Road to Rob
by PsiOblivion
Summary: A few months after the events of Zero Island(Zero Isle Arc) The group of combined ex cp9 agents, and friends search the oceans of the new world to find both thier companions, and the person who wants them dead. Hopefully, they are not the same thing...
1. Birth Island-1

It has been a few months since that departure from Zero island into the new world. To say some of them were giddy, would be an understatement. Some of them were eager to meet this "Rob Lucci", while others were hesitant or unsure. Of course, the ex-agents couldn't actually tell them what to expect. It had been almost two years since they had seen Lucci and Kaku, and frankly they wouldn't KNOW what to expect. Especially after the way they parted ways. It wasn't revenge worthy of course, but it still seemed like it could have gone better. No matter how it ended, the new beginning was destined. They made a vow and they were going to follow through, no matter how it would end.

"We should be arriving soon. Maybe by tomorrow morning", Kalifa called out. She was at the wheel of the boat steering in the direction of Birth Island. It was dark out, but they could somehow feel they were getting close to land.

"Luckily we got directions from the guy at the last island huh", Fukurou said.

"Yeah, right after she kicked him", Gurin said as she facepalmed.

"And I am curious as to why the island is named Birth island. Is it a nursery of some sort", Kumadori asked.

"I don't see them dedicating a whole island to a nursery... unless it's for something dangerous", Raymond replied. "Still we can't rule anything out. The New world is supposed to be weird and random in some ways."

Blueno had exit from a room aboard the ship. "So basically, we must expect the unexpected. Be ready for anything. I must say, it does make me uneasy however. Most islands are named after something for a reason. Birth island...", Blueno continued to ponder.

"Coffee helps me think. Would anyone want some", borya asked.

"Isn't it a bit too late for coffee", Gurin asked. Her question was answered by Raymond and Kalifa holding out their mugs. "Eh, never mind", she said as she giggled.

"Forget that! I'm off to bed", Jabra shouted as he made his way to his bed.

"Might not be a bad idea actually. May as be refreshed for a good first impression", Moira added. With that being said, everyone retired to the quarters for the night. Everything was going according to plan so far. The journey to Birth Island was coming along nicely, and they've yet to encounter anything malicious or odd...at least that was all before they woke up the next morning.

The next morning, Serenity was awakened by the beams of the sun shining through her window. Her natural instinct was to shield her eyes, but something told her to get up right then and there. The second she did, she noticed that something was different. She felt... a lot better than normal. Almost like she had more energy too. "Well, I wonder if this means that today is going to be a wonderful day. She got up and made her way to the bathroom. It even seemed like her footsteps had picked up a little bit more as well. She was all ready to wash her face, but then she looked into the mirror...and screamed.

Blueno, Fukurou and Kalifa all came running down the hallway, towards Serenity's room. "What? What happened", Fukurou quickly asked.

"This happened", Serenity said as she turned around. Her entire face...looked younger! She looked like she magically went back down to her 20's again! Even though she was surprised at her own self, she got another surprised when she turned to the three. They too looked younger! "What happened? Did we go back in time or something? We all look so young!"

"'We'", Blueno repeated. He walked over to Serenity's mirror and noticed that he too looked younger. "What in the world is this!?"

Fukurou and Kalifa ran over to the mirror, all trying to fit in it at once, and noticed that they also looked younger too. "Did everyone on the ship get younger", Fukurou asked. Kalifa and Fukurou looked as if they reverted back to teenagers.

"Quick! Check the other rooms", Serenity said. They all split up to round up the remaining unaware crewmates, only to find out that the result was the same for each of them. Everyone had somehow shrunk in age. Most of them even shrunk in size as well. "This...cant be normal."

"Ok, so does ANYONE know what could have possibly happened", Jabra asked.

"Other than the fact that this is the new world where anything can happen", Borya replied.

"Yes, smartass! We need to find the EXACT reason!"

"He's so loud and obnoxious", Gurin said. Jabra looked over towards her and growled.

"Take a chill pill Jabra. I'm sure when we land on the island someone can help us figure this out", Raymond said.

"Right, advice from a twelve your old", he replied with slight irritation.

"We're approaching the island now. If there's any answers then maybe they can give them to us. Do we still have knowledge of our abilities", Kalifa asked.

"Let me check. Storm Leg", Fukurou shouted as he kicked the air, and created a blade of wind. The blade sliced directly over Moira and Borya who both ducked under the attack. "Still works!"

"Hey easy on Sky Dancer, we only have one of her!" The impact of the attack was evident in the wall.

"We still have knowledge of our skills, which means we have only shrunk in body and not mind", Kumadori said.

"Do you think this is another one of those silencers or something", Raymond asked.

Gurin stepped forward, also looking younger than when she went to sleep. "Seems most likely. We haven't encountered any of them since we left Zero island, but I don't think they gave up already either. We should be careful even docking." Everyone nodded in understanding.

"It doesn't seem like a trap. At least not yet. "Raymond, if you would", Jabra said.

"I hope this still works." Raymond used his Haki to look ahead. He gained a bit better control with it over time, but still far from perfecting it. "Nearby, nothing but plants and maybe a few animals, but I'm not seeing any human figures nearby. If there are any silencers here, they are definitely not nearby, but there's still a whole island to explore.

Gurin transformed, and took flight. "Gurin, do you see anything", Kalifa asked.

"Other than you guys...just birds, and trees. So many trees. Wait! I... think I see something. Looks like a house! Maybe someone's inside", she said as she pointed straight ahead.

"Good work! Come down so we can investigate", Blueno said. He began to lead the way towards the direction Gurin suggested. The path was still shrouded by trees. Some of them had fruit of them but they didn't look very ripe. Others sort of looked like they were recently planted. It's almost as if the island hasn't been here that long.

"It didn't seem that far away, but it's taking forever to get there", Gurin said. As they approached the mentioned building. It wasn't very big. It was all white, and it looked more like a house. Though it was surrounded by plant life, the house looked well-kept from the outside.

"Is anyone inside? And even if so, we should probably be cautious. We are more than likely in silencer territory", Borya said. He reached forward and knocked on the door...but noone came to the door. He knocked a bit harder this time, and the entire door fell over. "Whoops!"

"Oh great going! Hold the phone, something tells me that wasn't your fault. Look", Fukurou shouted. They looked past the doorway and saw more forest. Not in indoor kind, but the actual forest. The building was somehow cut in half! "What the hell happened here?"

"That's a CLEAN cut. Dare I say perfect. There's almost no way someone could have done this by accident. Gurin, I thought you said you saw a building", Kalifa said as she entered what was left of the building.

"I did! I swear there was a whole lab here a moment ago."

Blueno came forward to investigate the damage. The area that was cut seemed to be pretty clean. The openings were fresh. In fact, they were VERY fresh. This had to have been done quite recently. "Something tells me that whoever, or whatever did this is close. I don't see any logical reason for destroying this building since there's no one even here, but it as Kalifa said, this was no accident. The cut is only on the building, and nowhere else. Not even the tree's and they're so close by."

"Wait, wait! Do you hear that", Jabra asked. He leaned in closer to the direction they were headed. It sounds like commotion. I think I can hear someone fighting! Deeper in the forest! Come on!"

"Oh, for the love of...after him", Moira shouted. They all sprang towards the forest, following Jabra as he led them. There were more trees...but most of them were cut in half, while others seemed like they were still growing. Even now, there were large boulders cut in half. Other than the sky seemingly growing darker, it was the same the whole path until they reached yet another building. "Oh great! Is this one wrecked too?"

More sounds could be heard coming from beyond the face of the building. "The sounds are coming from past there!"

"Hm?" Kalifa kicked open the door, with little concern of the consequence. Though this was classified as an emergency considering they magically got younger. "No. This one's is intact."

Raymond peeked his head through the door. "Kalifa, we could have just checked the sides you know, and...ah never mind. Hey! I can hear the yelling now too. Sounds like they're saying something. 'get...her...get her before she...reduces us to nothing'? What does that mean?"

"Only one way to find out. Lets head in." Blueno led the way deeper into the lab. There were chemicals on the counters, but they looked as if they haven't been touched in a long time, let alone used. There were also plants growing out of the ground and entangling the tables. The outside of this building looked new, but the inside sure didn't. Suddenly they arrived at a huge door, where they could clearly hear the commotion much clearer. "Everyone, be on your guard. There's something going on behind this door." Everyone prepared themselves for a possible ambush! The second Blueno opened the door, they were surprised to see that the area further in was exactly the same as the lab area they just left, albeit four people on the inside. There were was a male, whom looked to be a teenager, along with a woman who looked about the same age. Next to them was a child. A similarity they all shared was the world government symbol on their clothing. In front of them was a very tall wearing an all-black suit. "Huh"

"Oh my! What is this", Kumadori asked very loudly.

"Oh, its about time you showed up! I got so bored waiting for you that I had to entertain myself!" She gave a very unsettling smile...the best word to describe it...was poisonous.


	2. Birth Island-2

There she stood. A lady dressed in an all-black suit. Despite the amount of times the ex-agents have seen this sight, this for obvious reasons intimidated them. These were more government officials, but no way would a weakling be expecting them. She stood on a stone pillar that went nearly halfway up to the roof of the building. Even without her heels, she looked as if she would tower over most of them. "Let me guess, another silencer", Fukurou asked.

"Not quite. In the time you losers had gone rouge, I had moved up in the ranks. In a way, I guess I was supposed to be a replacement, whilst the new brood of agents are being trained."

"So you're more than likely weaker than us then! If that's the case you may as well get out of our way", Kalifa said.

"I MIGHT have been weaker than you before, but let's not forgot what's become of you. You're half the people you used to be. And I almost mean that literally. At most, you would barely classify as a threat to me personally. With the power of my HALF-HALF fruit, I've reduced you in age.

"Wait! So, this was YOUR doing?! It really WAS the power of a devil fruit", Raymond replied.

"Yes! With it, I can cut just about anything in half. From inanimate objects, and even to a persona age. Maybe even their lifespan if I concentrate enough. You're stuck like that now. So don't bother asking me to change you back"

"Stuck!? Oh heavens! That simply can't be", Kumadori said as he grabbed the sides of his head.

Gurin patted him on his back. "If its anything like a lot of long-term effect bearing devil fruits, then we simply need to knock her out and we'll go back to normal, right?

"It wont be as easy as it sounds. Look what she did to us", the teenage girl said. Her uniform looked as it was too big for her. "Enough games Violet! Your wasting your time on us, when the enemy just got here!" Violet! That was her name? Strangely enough, she didn't look much like a violet.

"Ah your right! It was boring messing with you three anyways. They should put up much more of a fight."

"Tch. Let's get this over with! We got a dumb cat to find", Jabra yelled out.

"Cat? Cat...oh, wait! You must be referring to Rob Lucci! Your trying to find him? Strange, he made it all the way to the higher ranks. Is he requesting you, or are you simply trying to go back to your 'captain'", she asked mockingly?

"Does this answer your question", Kalifa asked, she took out a container. She poured some liquid onto her hands, and rubbed them together. The liquid began to foam."

"Washing your hands? No, that doesn't answer anything. It only raises questions. Like your sanity", Violet replied.

"Bubble Shot!" Kalifa blew on her hand, and bubbles traveled along with the air, creating a blizzard of bubbles. The wave washed over the three agents, dropping them to their knees as expected. However, the moment the wave reached Violet, she simply cut the air with her finger, splitting the wave in two, and making them go past her.

"Did you miss the part where I said I can cut anything?"

"But can you cut SOUND!" Moira yelled, and made a shockwave with her voice, but amazingly, even that was cut in two before reaching her.

"A-NY-THING", Violet Reiterated.

"We'll have to approach this one a lot more carefully, lest we end up turning into toddlers again", Blueno said. "She can cut attacks that don't make contact, and she can clearly shave inches off our ages as well, and more than likely even cut us apart. What does that leave us with?"

"If we catch her off guard, she wont be able to use her power, right", Borya asked.

Fukurou nodded. That's going to be the hard part. There's no telling the amount of training she has. We have to make absolutely sure she doesn't see us coming!

"I cant hear what you're saying, but I'm not going to give you the chance to plan anything. I'll shave a couple more inches off your life!" Violet swiped her finger from left to right, and made a blade like shockwave fly through the air.

"Incoming", Fukurou yelled, almost all of them ducked low towards the ground...with the exception of Raymond. The blade flew through him and knocked him to the ground. It didn't cut his body in half, rather it cut his age in half again.

"Dammit Raymond, you were supposed to dodge that", Jabra shouted from the ground.

"Your right...sorry", Raymond replied as he stood up. He looked to be about six years old now. "I won't make that mistake again.

"You sure wont! Next one will cut your head off your shoulders", Violet yelled. She did the same thing again, but this time she used her leg.

Fortunately, Raymond jumped out of the way this time. The wave flew by him and sliced through the wall. She can send waves of it out. "I didn't even feel the one before this one. I guess that explains how she attacked overnight." He pulled out three firecrackers. "Take cover everyone! SkyGlow!" He pulled the strings from the tops, and tossed them towards Violet.

"You think I'm afraid of a few measly fireworks?" Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the ex-agents shielding their faces. This seemed to be a red flag for her, but she didn't react fast enough, and got a face full light. The fireworks created a bright flash! Ack, my eyes!"

"Quick, now's your chance", Raymond shouted.

"I'm on it! Fukurou rushed over to Violet and prepared an attack, though before he could manage it, she vanished! It was more than likely with a "shave" technique. "Ugh! She fled!"

Borya jumped up and clung to a nearby wall, by puncturing it with his fingers. "Be on guard! She might still be here!"

Raymond shook his head. "No. I can't detect her nearby. She did indeed flee, but I don't feel her here anymore. How aggravating. But...there does seem to be some kind of tunnel below us." Borya released his grip from the wall, and purposely landed hard on the ground with both feet, sending him through the floor.

"What is he doing", Moira asked.

"I think I get it now. Everyone follow him", Gurin said as she too, went underground through the hole, he made."

"Oh, this isn't good. If they find violet, they'll ruin everything", one of the government officials said.

"Don't think we forgot about you", Raymond said as he walked closer to the 4 of them. He then quickly stuck a rocket to each of their clothes, and began walking away. "Sorry, but even if you are one of her 'victims' you're still after us too." He then hopped into the hole along with the rest of his friends.

"Whats this supposed to be?" One of them touched at the rocket, stuck to his shirt. Before he could get an answer, the rockets shot out sparks, and lifted off into the sky, carrying each of them with them! A loud boom sound could be heard from the tunnels.

"An underground tunnel it seems. This could be most useful for her. A very clever one indeed", Kumadori said loudly."

Kalifa quickly covered his mouth. "Shush! She's already at an advantage. Loud noises would only make things worse. Come, lets proceed cautiously. If we give her even the slightest chance, she'll off us. I can only hope that this will wear off when we defeat..." before she could finish, another wave shot through the area. Fortunately, Raymond saw it coming this time and jumped...though the rest of the group was hit, and once again reduced in age.

"The hell!? Are you serious", Jabra shouted. How can this wave move so fast!? I couldn't even see it coming. Raymond, think of something!"

Raymond shook his head. At this rate we'll all be toddlers. With her being hidden, she can shoot these waves from even behind walls, and from great distances, considering I don't even see her nearby. They fly faster than we thought... simply avoiding them seems to be only a temporary solution. Finding her would be the most obvious solution. However, I think I have a solution. First things first we'll have to find her again. But in order to do that, we'll have to move quicker."

"Is that so? Very well. Whats this plan of yours", Blueno asked.

"For this to work, I'll need Gurin's speed, Moira's voice, and your abilities too, Blueno." this confused the group. What in the world was he planning. "Ok, here's the plan."

"Hm, are they still in the tunnel? Maybe I should send another wave in", violet said as she smirked. She was in another room that seemed to be at the end of the tunnel system. Her snail transponder began to call out to her. "Yes, this is Violet."

"Greetings. This is Claire. Have you taken care of those clods yet? We've just received work that Lucci is on the move again. Something about fishman island."

"No, not yet. And why would I care about that kitty cat?"

"Idiot! Remember who they're trying to find!"

"Yes, and I'm still not getting your point. Its not like they'd be able to reach him without coating their ship. And even if they knew that, he'd be gone by the time they got there."

"One of them most likely knows that. But that's not what concerns me. If they find him and Kaku, they'll run rampant on the government, cost us our jobs, and throw the world itself into chaos! They are to be KILLED on the spot. We're not taking any prisoners!"

Just more than halfway through the cave, the group began to hear talking. Gurin stopped the group. "Wait! Do you hear that? Sounds like she's nearby. But whose she talking to?"

"Only one way to find out. Lets go", Moira called out.

Violet could hear multiple footsteps approaching. "Ah, looks like thy found me. Claire, I'll have to call you back."

"Fine, but I'm starting the next plan, as a safety net. Don't louse this up!" The snail transponder hung up.

Fukurou emerged out of the cave, climbing the air with his moonwalk ability. "We got you now! We won't let you get away this time.

Blueno looked over at Raymond and nodded. "Lets hope this works"

...To Be continued!


	3. Birth Island -3

Violet turned towards the approaching group. "Alright, I've been informed that we no longer have time for games. Your deaths are imperative to the government. Actually, now that I think about it, you lot just might be worth more than the bounty of a lot of dangerous pirates out there."

"Don't compare us to pirate scum!" Jabra yelled.

Moira stepped forward. "Do you know anything about our enemy." She wasn't expecting to get a legit answer, but that made Violets reply all the more shocking.

"Cannibal", she said. The one you are looking for is named Cannibal."

"Cannibal? The name sounds so..." Raymond started.

"Implicative? Yes, quite. Rumor has it, that he and several of his colleagues have carnivorous zoan devil fruits...and they have quite the extreme taste."

"Sickening! Even more reason to put an end to them! You guys ready?"

"Whatever you're planning I won't give you the chance!" Violet pointed her finger upwards and sliced the roof in an X Shape! It couldn't withstand the sudden attack, and plummeted towards the ground.

"Everyone, scatter", Serenity called out as she jumped out of the way of the falling debris. The entire roof came down upon the area. It was so big that avoiding it was near impossible.

"Ack! She's literally bringing the house down", Borya said as he rubbed his head.

"No time for puns, we gotta get rid of her", Fukurou replied.

"Bahahaha! I hope you've made peace; I'm going to mutilate all of you!" Violet began to attack with a myriad of waves left and right. At this point, she wasn't even trying to aim. It was almost like some sort of game to her. Throw and throw to see what lands. One thing was clear however. She wasn't trying to reduce their ages anymore. Each wave that didn't hit, sliced through the walls, and rocks that occupied any space.

"She's not even looking where she's aiming anymore! Whatever you guys are doing, do it", Kalifa said. One of the blades got her right in the arm at that moment. Another of them got Kumadori whom was shielding Gurin!

"Alright, Blueno, Gurin, quick! Into the air door!" After the prompt, Blueno created a door within the very space in front of them. All three of them hopped in! Remember, the plan", Raymond said. Both of them nodded.

"Stupid idiots! Thinking they can plot in that air door. Whatever! She began to dole out the attacks even faster, making them even harder to dodge now. It was like being in a hurricane of blades. They just kept flying all over the place!"

"Moira, hurry and take point before it's too late", Serenity shouted, narrowly avoiding another air scythe.

"Right! Here goes!" Moira ran forward, closer to the spinning Violet! One of the scythes grazed her face, but she continued on, the second she got far enough, she yelled and shot a wave of her voice at her.

"Dont you ever learn", Violet asked as she stopped. The quickly cut the sound in half again.

Right then and there, the door appeared behind violet and opened up. Within it, were Blueno and Raymond. "This should teach YOU!" Raymond loaded the candle with a blue capsule, and fired at Violet. At the distance he was, missing was impossible...but avoiding the attack wasn't her intention either.

She quickly turned to the open door and readied herself, and sliced at the incoming water attack. Though the slice went through, most of the water still splashed on her. "I'm not scared of a little water. What exactly did that 'teach' me", she asked with a smirk. "Your little distraction with the loud mouth one didn't catch me off guard in the slightest, either." Suddenly, she started to feel a bit off. It didn't really concern her though.

"Not to be so cocky!" I still have plenty of ammo!"

"It won't do you any good since...", right then and there, she got a surprise. She felt a pair of arms wrap around her body! What the hell!?"

"Got you now, you demon!" Gurin shouted.

"Where the hell did YOU come from", Violet asked, as she struggled.

"THIS was our plan, Violet! Moira wasn't the distraction. THOSE two were", Gurin said as she motioned towards the air door."

"Moira was more of a fake out distraction. I knew you'd be on guard once we all entered the air door...but one thing you didn't notice is that the door we entered, never closed. While Blueno and I moved behind you, Gurin remained behind close by inside the open door. You assumed that we all would appear next to you, and that ended up being your downfall. Gurin, now's your chance!"

"What!? What are you going to do? Let go of me! You filth!"

Gurin nodded, and transformed! Her tail wrapped around Violet's legs, immobilizing her. She flew straight upwards, like a rocket flying into the sky. "You should have known better than to pick a fight with us. If a silencer couldn't beat us, then your chances were slim. "

Violet continued to struggle, but her strength seemed to have been sapped from her somehow. "Why...do I feel so weak?"

"That was his Neptune shot! You sliced at it, but it has ground sea stone it. It doesn't nullify devil fruit powers, but it still makes you weak if it hits you. Now you cant do anything, except prepare for THIS!" Gurin turned Violet and herself upside down.

"You wouldn't dare!"

"SEEDLING PLANT!" She zoomed back towards the lab, like a falling bullet and tomb stoned Violet, sending her through the floor!

"That HAD to hurt", Raymond said as he walked over to the hole that Gurin hovered over. He looked into the hole, and saw Violet laid out flat on the ground twitching within a crater. It didn't appear she was going to get up anytime soon. "I love it when a plan comes together. Great job everyone! She shouldn't be a problem for us any longer. Or at least not right now."

"Thats great and all, but we still have no idea where we're going", Borya replied. Right then and there, everyone began to revert back to their original ages again. "Ah shucks. It was actually pretty nice being young again."

"Just be yourself Borya", Kalifa said as she pushed past him. There's bound to be some records we can look at here. Even if the base is trashed. All we need to do is look up the surrounding areas and we'll go from there. At least to prevent ourselves from being lost."

"We passed a bunch of file cabinets on the way here. Maybe we'll find something there", Serenity replied. She began to lead the way back towards the entrance.

"Violet! Violet, respond", Claire yelled over the snail transponder.

"Yes...this is violet." Her voice was strained, and she seemed to only have a small grasp on her consciousness.

"What the hell happened? Why do you sound so sick?"

"They're your problem now...", Violet replied before hanging up the call. "Geese...this was supposed to be an easy mission. How did it come to this", she said before slipping into a deep unconsciousness.

Claire shook her head. "Hmph. I suppose she was along the lines of one of the weaker subordinates. Oh well. Their luck can't last forever.

"Nope. Nothing here! Not even info on Violet", Fukurou cried out. He had just finished searching one of the file cabinets.

Jabra reached the same conclusion with the one he searched. "Nothing here either. Got a lot on recent events though. You all might want to look at this one. "Everyone gathered around to look at the file he held up. It had pictures of both the Strawhats crew, and picture of fishman island. "Looks like they ran amok there too."

"Oh, strawahats huh? Those the guys you told me about", Raymond asked.

"Yes! Half the reason we're on the run in the first place", Jabra replied as he threw the file down.

"But also half the reason we all met", Raymond replied as he picked up the file.

Jabra gave a small smile. "Damn you..."

"Look, on the last page. The one that talks about Holy city. It says that that two members of CP-0 are planned to be dispatched to Levely. The two bodyguards are apparently named 'Rob Lucci' and 'Kaku'. This looks pretty recent."

"Are you serious? This old place had an updated file? Maybe this place isn't as old as we thought. If that's the case, whats with all these plants", Blueno asked.

"I think it looks lovely", Serenity chimed in. Though of course she would. "Anyway, isn't that place pretty strict with who goes in and out. Not only that, but we're not exactly going to be welcomed in after out 'betrayal'. Makes me wonder how those two even got back in the governments good side."

"Thats irrelevant. We'll just have to drag them out of there if we need to. "How far away is this place anyway, Serenity", Kalifa asked.

"I'd be lying if I told you I know the exact amount of time. I know the general direction, but...I'd still say it could take a while to get there. "He'd more than likely be gone by the time we got there.

"Then we'll just gather more info there if we need to. We can't rest until we have this little problem under control", Moira said. "Do we have enough information to proceed?"

"I'll take the remaining files just in case. You never know what might need out of these", Fukurou added.

"Good idea Fukurou. The more info we have, the better. I find this whole situation disturbing. Why do your friends want to work for people who tried to hunt you all."

"Might be his lust to kill. Who know? Even something as simple as that would be enough for him to roll over", Jabra replied. Either way, lets go. The longer we stand around, the easier it wil be for another enemy to spot up.

The group headed back to the ship, completely unaware that there were cameras hidden around the building. Whichever ones haven't been broken have probably caught their plans on camera already. It would only be a matter of time before someone finds them again.

It had been only a few days since they left Birth island. They STILL were getting back used to their original ages, let alone bodies. Kumadori kept himself busy with fishing for the day's meals, whilst Moira had a pretty good knack for cooking. She wasn't Sanji level but could definitely cook.

Fukurou, Jabra, Gurin and Raymond all continued to look through the files they had pilfered from the base. "Man, still nothing on this island's whereabouts. All of this is just junk Fukurou already new and...wait, here's a file on Jabra", Raymond said as he opened it up.

Jabra quickly turned to Raymond and tried to snatch away the file, but he missed by an inch, as Raymond held it closer. "Hey, gimme that!"

"Lets see..your previous mission before the Enies lobby one was...to kill...Oh dear. I said I wouldn't judge but...", Raymond said as he tossed the file behind him. He was met with a swift bonk on the head from Jabra.

"Well, you should have expected that! We're...not exactly GOOD people in the basic term. We're just that awesome", he said with a smile.

Raymond rubbed his head. "Yeah yeah, you're a sick puppy and your proud of it. I...hey wait...what's THAT say?" Raymond pointed to the ground. It was another file with Lucci's face on it.

"I didn't see it until now", Fukurous replied. It looks pretty important. "It looks like a report on his return to the government. THIS should answer a lot of questions."

"That plus the info on this 'Cannibal' man should really come in handy", Moira said as she eyed the stack of paper on the ground. "A faint burning smell began to waft around the cabin.

Gurin sniffed the air. Moira...by any chance did you leave the stove on?"

"Well I'll be...I got distracted!" She ran back into the kitchen only to see a fire engulfing the meal she was preparing for the night. "Oh dear. Sorry, I should have been paying attention."

"No prob. Why don't we all take a break and help clean up", Gurin asked.

"Ugh, fine. But no more fish. I'm getting tired of fish!"

"Oh, but Jabra, fish is quite good for both the mind and body", Kumadori replied.

"How about we just do a surprise pot", Raymond asked. They all looked at him confused. Its something my dad and I used to do. We each take something we both like, and put it into a soup and see how it turns out. Its fun because you can get anything from bad tasting, to really good tasting!"

"Oh, sounds risky. I'm in" Sereinty said. "Gotta have some fresh herbs."

"Lots and lots of Oregano", Fukorou added.

"Fresh fruits. That gives it zing", Gurin said.

Kumadori nodded. "And Good fish!"

"NO FISH", Jabra shouted.

The group all prepared to throw their favorite foods into the pot, in hopesd of making something really tasty. All the while, a small gleam of a seemingly heart shaped island was in the path of their adventure.


	4. Someone Else's Shoes -1

"I'm adding one tomato", Kalifa said as she added some diced tomato to a boiling pot. Along with the contributions of Raymond's celery, Gurin's apple slices, Jabra's slices of lamb, Kumadori's fish, Blueno's rice, Moira's banana slices, Borya's coffee beans; which raised of few eyebrows, Fukurou's chocolate bar; which raised even more eyebrows, and Serenity's slices of bread, the pot of random foods stirred and created a very strange aroma that seemed to waft around the entire ship. "This looks like and interesting mixture. Are we sure we want to do this?"

"I think it's a good idea. What could be better than a meal with components contributed by all of your dear friends", Kumadori said as he stirred with a big wooden spoon.

"Looks just about done. Who will be the brave soul to try it first", Borya asked.

"It was Raymond's idea so he should probably do it first", Fukurou said as he nudged Raymond closer to the pot.

"Hold it, Raymond! I'll test if first. My body is stronger", Jabra said as he hopped in front of Raymond.

"I'm flattered, but stop it! It's just food", Raymond said as he moved closer to the pot. He scooped some into a bowl with a ladle, and sipped at it. "Hm..." he sipped at it again. "You know, it's full of strange different flavors, but its actually not half bad."

"Oh! Let me try", Fukurou said as he too sipped at some in another bowl. Oh, the chocolate really brings out the flavor!"

"Oh, it's like a potluck in ONE bite", Gurin said. The soup was a brown color, with many different foods sticking out of it. Everyone sipped at their soup bowls, with signs of satisfaction. It wasn't 5-star food, sure, but it was much better than eating burned fish.

"What island do you think we'll end up on next", Moira asked. The universe must have decided to answer her question. As soon as she said that, they felt their ship crash into something, nearly knocking them all over. "Did we just hot something? Oh no! The Sky Dancer!"

"Moira relax. I'm sure whatever it was, probably only left a dent that we can probably get out no problem...probably", Borya said as he wiped some of the soup off of his face. The impact made it splash a few areas. She didn't seem very comforted though.

"Where did this hideous ship come from!? What is it doing in my path", a feminine voice called out.

Raymond walked over towards the door that enters the deck. "I take it we hit another ship." As soon as he poked his head out the door...he saw it. "That...that's the...is it possible?"

"What do you see, Raymond", Serenity asked. As she too walked outside, she saw the Kuja ship. Owned by nonother than the Kuja pirates. All atop the Perfume Yuda. Isn't that the famous Kuja ship", she asked Raymond. He didn't respond. His face seemed emotionless, but she could read deeper than just skin deep. He was definitely lost in thought.

"Wait! You mean the tribe full of beautiful women!? What are the odds", Jabra asked excitedly? From Amazon Lily!?"

Raymond sighed. "Yeah, that's the one. All the way from that place." He didn't seem too enthusiastic with the response.

"Who dares stand in my path? State your name", a tall beautiful woman emerged from the group of women. "Well, I suppose the ship doesn't look so bad...but still!"

"I believe that's the snake princess. Boa Hancock, the pirate empress. She's captain of the Kuja pirates and Queen of Amazon Lily", Serenity said. We'd best be cautious around that one. It doesn't take much for her to attack anyone who makes her angry, and her devil fruit is quite deadly. She can use strange powers to turn her enemies into stone."

"Hey, how did you know that", Raymond asked.

"The cipher pole branch has info on all kinds of things. I'm definitely sure Fukurou probably already knew about her as well." Fukurou simply nodded.

Raymond looked out and saw the shore close by. There was a big pink island. "Let's just pay her no mind for now. We've hit land."

"This is...sort of out of character for you", Kalifa said. He didn't respond. "Why is this island so pink?"

"Wait...I think this is Momoiro island. We had records on this as well, Blueno said as he lowered the anchor. "How in the world did we get all the way out HERE?"

Gurin looked over the island. It truly was covered from head to toe in pink. Not only that, but the mountains seemed to be sprouting trees in a distinct heart shaped order. "I never thought I'd see an island like this! What do you think lives here?"

"See for yourself", Serenity said as she pointed to the inhabitants. There were many men dressed as women upon the beach. "These are what are known as Okamas. Welcome to Kamabakka kingdom."

Oh, we have visitors. The snake princess and her crew have arrived. And... from what I can tell...some strangers", one of the residents said.

"Well, isn't this lovely? What's the snake princess doing here", another one said. This man, seemed to be bigger than the rest of them."

"Oh, I believe that's Emporio Ivankov. The Queen of this island", Serenity went on." Everyone looked at her, seemingly very impressed. "Yeah, when you've been around for as long as I have in the government, you tend to know a lot of things."

"Government workers! Have you come to start trouble? I warn you; I have no mercy for those who try to hurt me, or my candy boys and girls", he said as he prepared a stance.

Kalifa came forward. "Relax, we're not here to cause any trouble. We don't even work for the government anymore. Not after they tried to hunt and kill us."

"Oh, so they turned against you? That's not surprising. Dark justice and all", Ivankov replied as he sighed. "But if that's the case, then why did you come here?"

"We were just passing through. There's an island we're looking for..." Raymond began to say.

"And they crashed into my ship with their tacky water skimmer", Boa said as she jumped onto the shoreline.

Moira instantly turned to her. "Tacky!? The Skydancer is one of the most beautiful ships in the new world thank you!" Her comment was purposely ignored by Boa.

"ANYWAY, we have some news to report about Luffy", she said as she approached Ivankov. The only thing between her and the Okama Queen was Raymond, trying to make heads or tails of the situation. Without warning she attempted to kick him out of the way. Raymond dodged her kick at the very last second. Stay out of my path, you fool!" This surprised the group of travelers. She attacked unprovoked, just like Serenity warned.

Jabra hopped over next to him. "Fool? Fool!? I'd rather be a fool, than a demon", Raymond said.

Boa stopped in her tracks, and turned towards Raymond. "No man is allowed to speak to me in such a way... have I made you angry", she asked mockingly. It was almost as if she was taunting him. As if she honestly believed she had the right to attempt to kick him. The look in Raymond's eyes spoke for him. He was not pleased at all. "Surely you could forgive someone as beautiful as me", she said as she batted her eyelashes.

Jabra smiled and nodded rapidly. "Hehe! Of course, we can forgive you! Anything for you!"

She cupped her hand together, and fired a pink beam that seemed to be in the shape of a heart. Raymond quickly pushed Jabra out of the way. The beam washed over Raymond like a light from a flashlight.

"Oh dear", Ivankov said.

"Raymond! Oh no", Serenity said, expecting him to be turned to stone. To her surprise, Raymond did not turn to stone. He stood there, staring at her. "huh? This is odd."

Boa gasped in surprise. "What!? How is this possible? There's only one man who can resist my power without causing himself pain, and that's my lovely Luffy! What are you, some kind of robot!? No...if you were a robot, you would still fall before me. Your taste in women must be aweful!"

Raymond shook his head. I'm aware of how your power works. That alone isn't enough to stop it however. While I do think you are a very beautiful woman, I am not attracted to you in that way."

"Huh? How does Raymond know how it works? Has he been doing homework or something", Serenity asked.

"No. He knows Boa Hancock. He was born on Amazon Lily", Fukurou shouted. Everyone looked quite surprised at this.

"That couldn't be, since the women of amazon Lily rarely had male children. And when they did, they didn't keep them", Serenity asked.

"They DIDN'T keep me. They abandoned me. More specifically my mother did. Asherah was her name."

"Oh! Now I remember you. You were the child of that Fuer man! The one that Asherah got rid of. I can see it was for the best. You clearly have no manners, just like every man. Your no different than the rest of the filth in the world that I have to deal with every day." She did her trademark point whilst "looking down" on her converser.

"That means a LOT coming from you" he replied sarcastically. You think your better than everyone you meet, don't you? Well, you're not. On the inside you're an ugly beast, and I feel bad for anyone who has to deal with you. Talking to you has always left a bad taste in my mouth. Lets go guys. This encounter left a me with a headache", Raymond said as he turned towards the ship.

It wouldn't be that easy. Boa seemed to become furious from his words. She jumped high into the air. And tried to slam her foot down onto Raymond. He avoided in the nick of time again. How dare you! I should have ended you at birth...but now I have another chance. You wont be leaving this shore alive! I'll kill you where you stand and feed you to my pets!

"Hmph. Want to try me!? Don't blame me if you wind up at the bottom of the ocean", he replied back.

The whole group stood on guard. They haven't been on the island for even 10 minutes yet, and things were already heating up. "I've never seen him so angry before. It's kind of cool. What's he so angry about anyway", Jabra asked.

"I plan on getting to the bottom of this", Serenity said. She looked more intrigued than anything.

"Uh oh. Shouldn't you do something, Iva San", another one of the residents said. He had a red and white afro, and was holding a glass of wine.

"Your right Inazuma! And I know just what to do. You two break it up! I have a fun little activity for all of you!"

"All? What does he mean all", Gurin asked.

"Hormone laser party!" Ivankov shot lasers out of each of his fingers, and swiped them across the battlefield. This unexpectantly caught everyone by surprise. The lasers swiped everyone at least once, even Boa and Raymond who seemed to be a bit further away from the others. The laser themselves didn't hurt on impact, but they each began to feel a very strange tingling sensation. Their vision blurred, and everything seemed to only last for a few seconds. Before they knew it, everything seemed to feel a bit...off.

"Iva! What is the meaning of this", a masculine voice shouted out. Upon closer inspection, it came from Boa Hancock...but...she didn't look like a she anymore. She had bulging muscles, and what seemed to be a beard. She had become a man!?

"What!? What did you do? Raymond asked. His voice came out in a very feminine manner. "He quickly covered his mouth! To his shock, he had breasts! He looked over to all his friends, and noticed a similar situation. Everyone had somehow become the opposite gender. "What did you DO to us!?"


	5. Someone Else's Shoes -2

After setting foot onto the island, and almost getting into a fight, the residents of the SkyDancer, as well as Boa Hancock, had switched genders thanks to Ivankov. "This defies logic on so many levels", Blueno said as she gazed into the water near the shore. Of course, a feminine reflection stared back.

"Iva! I demand that you turn me back this instant", Boa shouted.

"Sorry, snake prince, but I can't do that. After using that move to change so many people at once, I'm afraid I have to rest it. It has a cooldown period you know. I only did this so you two could learn a lesson. I'll change you back when I see some progress. Ok?"

Raymond crossed her arms and huffed. "Why am I being punished for this!? I don't have anything against women. Just THAT woman...er...man? This is really confusing."

Iva smiled and twirled. "Yes, I know. However, I believe that there is something about each other you each should learn. Your friends were just a bonus, for reasons I'll explain later. In the meantime, I suggest you two work out your differences". Iva said as he skipped away.

"Two days!? Great, so looks like we're stuck here for two days. This is going to halt our progress", Gurin said as he began gathering sticks.

"This is YOUR fault. I simply came here to share information about Dressrosa, but you had to stand in my way", Boa yelled as he pointed at Raymond.

"Oh shut up already! Even tho this isn't my fault you STILL find a way to blame me. He did have a point about one thing. Why do you hate men so much!? Why do you berate us at every opportunity? And for that matter why are you always looking down on people?"

"Because I CAN! Didn't you hear me the first time? Only someone as beautiful as me would have the privilege. And while you're not ugly, you'll definitely never be as gorgeous as me. Therefore, you'll never see it from my point of view.

"Ok, whatever Boa. My head is starting to hurt again. I can only take so much of you in one setting", she said as she walked back towards the Skydancer.

Boa huffed and made his way back over to the group of women that is his crew. Despite knowing Boa for quite some time, they seemed to be mesmerized by how she looked now. "W-what are you all staring at", he asked seeming to blush. She was normally used to people admiring her thanks to her looks...but now with the recent development, it felt... odd. "Dont get used to this! Its only until I can get turned back. Then I can make Iva pay for this, and we'll be on our way."

Night began to inch its way onto the island. It still looked so bright on the island thanks to trees, but even so, there was a campfire ablaze on the beach. "How are you all adjusting", Serenity asked.

"Um...I have to go to the bathroom... anything I should... 'know'", Moira asked.

"As long as you have good aim, you should be fine", Jabra replied. Her hair was down, and she decided earlier that it would be best to cover herself by buttoning her shirt.

"My chest feels a lot lighter, and my voice got so deep. This whole experience is very different", Gurin said. He seemed to be examining himself. "Is it fitting that Kumadori-San is already wearing makeup", he asked.

"Yoi yoi! No matter, what happens to my body, I must always come prepared. Would anyone like some", she shouted as she held up what looked like some Kabuki makeup.

"I'm sorry everyone. This wouldn't have happened if I just ignored Boa like I said I would", Raymond said. She seemed to be fiddling with some kind of clear circular object.

"Meh, we're not hurt I think, so it's not much of a problem", Borya said. The long hair remained, but her body shrunk a bit. Not to mention the beard vanished.

"Boa was kind of being rude. She must have been through something horrible to make her act this. I mean, not that it gives her the right to be, but still", Moria said.

Raymond thought about that, and actually began to feel just a bit bad. Perhaps something traumatized Boa at some point. Even so, he was not someone's punching bag. "Well, that's too bad, but..."

"Indeed", Boa said as he walked over to the campfire. He must have overheard some of the conversation. His two sisters Boa Sandersonia, and Boa Marigold were with her.

"What do YOU want", Raymond asked.

"Be silent", I only came to talk...I suppose.

"Oh, so there's a shred of humanity in you After all? Who'd have thought?"

"Hey! She...um...he's actually trying to talk to you this time", Marigold said.

"Fine, fine, what is it?"

"You wonder why I hate men so much, right? I talked to my sisters and my tribe...and they reminded me that at SOME point, you were actually a member of the tribe Albeit for such a short time. I guess somewhere along the way, I could grant you an explanation...but I won't tell everyone here. Only you", he said as he stood up and made his way towards the forest area.

"Very well", I'll be right back everyone", Raymond said, as she followed him into the forest.

"Please sit", Sandersonia said as she urged them all to gather around the campfire. "We'll tell you...some things, and in exchange you'll tell us some things. Sound fair", she asked.

"Very well. I have a good idea of what it's going to be about", Serenity replied. His hair was much shorter, but it still had the flowers in it.

"Why did you drag me all the way out here", Raymond asked.

"To show you this", Boa replied as he pulled off his shirt.

"Woah, woah! I know you...but I don't know you like 'that'. Raymond said as she covered her eyes seemingly embarrassed.

"What do you take me for, you fool! I was only going to show you my back! Look!" He turned around, and revealed that tattoo. The Hoof of the Soaring Dragon.

"Huh? Wait a minute...I've seen that scar before. Isn't that the scar that they gave..."

"Thats right! It's a brand given to those that were enslaved. And you know who gave my sisters and I this scar?" Raymond shook her head. "It was a MAN! It was the very first time any of us had seen a man."

"I see. That explains a lot then. The trauma that you felt as a child carried over. They, made you feel powerless...and then you got your own power, and decided to make them pay...by taking it out on others", Raymond said. She was trying to be understanding, but she was also trying to be realistic.

"So you all were enslaved then? That explains a lot", Gurin said.

"This is something many of us haven't told anyone...the fact that we're even telling you is beyond me...but our sis...er, brother said its ok...but no we want to know why your friend is so bent out of shape", Sandersonia asked.

"You mean besides the obvious awkward encounter? Well, I don't know EVERY detail, but...", Fukurou said as she warmed her hands by the fire.

"You know most of what happened already, Boa. My mother... everything was alright at the beginning...but it just so happens that when I turned old enough, people on the island began to find out that I wasn't supposed to be there. In fact even I didn't know I wasn't supposed to be there...but then YOU found out...and YOU made her get rid of me..."

"It was against the rules to...", he began to say.

"SO WHAT!? She was all I HAD at the time. You scared my father off, and you made her abandon me! She sent me adrift in the ocean! If it wasn't for a marine ship spotting me, I could have been DEAD. Do you know what kind of thoughts ran through my mind when they told me what you and your tribe were all about!?"

Boa turned his head. Are...you still blaming me", he asked. It was hard to tell how he was feeling at this point.

"How would YOU like it if someone took your sister away from you? I understand that you were hurt because of what a man did, but all YOU did was turn around and hurt someone else in the process", Raymond was fuming at this point. Even her breathing became heavier. "No matter how awful you are to someone, they just forgive you as soon as you act all cute. That's why I cant stand the sight of you! That's why I cant stand listening to you talk! THAT'S why I detest EVERYTHING you stand for!"

Boa continued to look away at first...but then he returned his gaze towards Raymond. "Do you feel better", he asked.

All that anger he must have suppressed for all those years...though perhaps she was being just a BIT hypocritical for a reason that JUST occurred to her. She sighed and sat down on a stump. "I'm sorry. I should be blaming my mother, more than I blame you. She is the one who gave me up. Didn't even bother to come with me to a different island. I'm sorry I yelled, and I'm sorry about what happened to you. Trauma really makes a person do crazy things I suppose."

Boa sighed and sat down on a wayward log. "She loved you, you know." Raymond raised her head at this. "I had never seen someone admire a child so lovingly. It tore her apart when she informed me that she would be letting you go", Boa said. Her voice continued to be emotionless, making it hard to tell is she was feeling bad, or just talking. All she knew is that it wasn't condescending like it usually was. She knew you'd be better off somewhere else anyway. Due to our customs, you would have only suffered as long as she was with you. I suppose I at least owe you that much information."

Raymond smiled. "See what happens when you're...more or less nice? "Though I suppose it doesn't really matter. People like you no matter what you do. In SOME ways I'll admit you at least deserve happiness in some form or another. And if this makes you happy...then whatever. If they're not complaining then that's on them", Raymond said as she stood up. No hard feelings", she asked.

"Hmph! Don't get me wrong, I still detest most men! That won't change. But I suppose you aren't so bad. Maybe! You tell anyone I said that, or mention ANYTHING about that scar and I'll kill you", he said.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, snake prince. I wish I could do something about that scar at the least, but..."

"It's of no concern. I'm heading back, now.", he said as he went back towards the group.

"So, it's more of an abandonment thing", Marigold asked. "That's quite a step down from what Boa went through, but..."

"Doesn't matter! Pain is pain. That feeling of abandonment can really hurt too...I would know", Jabra said. She recalled her own feeling of it, when he had arrived to Zero Island. "Depending on the person, it can also traumatize. Do you think they're ok in there? They haven't killed each other, have they?"

"Nah, just a little heart to heart", Raymond said. She seemed to be in one piece. As was Boa."

"Boa, you have returned! Shall we start preparing food", Marigold asked.

"Yes! See to it that the sea king is prepared!"

"Will you be joining us", Sandersonia asked over to the adjacent group.

"No! They can find their own food! We don't have to share our sustenance", Boa said as he marched over to his ship.

"Well, the Queen...eh..king has spoken. Sorry", Marigold giggled and she and Sandersonia ran off towards Boa.

"Ugh, I knew there wouldn't be too much of a change. Baby steps I suppose", Raymond said.

"What was the talk about", Gurin asked. "Did you get her to apologize?"

"Well, it wasn't exactly an apology, but considering who it was, it was almost as good as one, I guess.

"Thats great an all, but I'm getting a craving for boar now. Did you see any in the forest", Jabra asked.

"Hm, there might be some wildlife there. Plenty of vegetation too but.."

"Good! As long as its not fish", Jabra said as she transformed. For the most part, she still looked the same in her wolf human hybrid form.

"Oh, hunting! What a marvelous group activity", Kumadori said.

"I could live without it", Moira replied. It would seem he didn't take to the idea. His face seemed to be flushed.

With the first night already coming to a close, the group could only wait until the morning, in hopes that they would be returned to normal. Unbeknownst to them there was yet another enemy watching them.


	6. Someone Else's Shoes -3

"We made up, more or less. Now will you change us back", Raymond asked as she approached Iva. It was pretty early in the morning, but the group couldn't waste too much time on the island.

"Yeah, I mean this was a nice experience and all, but I think I'd prefer to be my original gender", Serenity said. Boa appeared to also be waiting eagerly by the helm of his ship.

"Well, see. That wasn't so bad, now was it? You settled the problem, AND experienced something new."

"You know, we could have solved the problem, without switching genders", Raymond replied.

"He just wanted an excuse to do this. I think he just likes showing off", Boa replied. Anyways, about that information I had to share", Boa said as he stepped over to Eva.

"Where do you think we'll end up going after this", Borya asked.

"We've got to be getting closer to Levely by now, right? What are we going to do once we get there", Gurin asked. I don't think they'll welcome us with open arms. Especially after whats happened.

Noone in the group knew the answer to this question. Even Blueno was at a loss. "I'm afraid there isn't much we can do. If we go in gung-ho then we'll probably get outnumbered. We'll have to sneak around until we find our targets."

"Ah, I see! Thanks for the update Snake prince! It would seem that they already made a big fuss on even punk hazard, and now they'll probably do the same on Dressrosa", Iva said. Alright. I suppose it's time to change you all back now. Our own little army has to plan our next step as well."

"Oh really? And what would THAT be", another familiar voice called out.

"I recognize that annoying voice", Borya said. She turned towards the dock, only to see Montague standing by the ship. "YOU again, huh! Where did you come from!?"

"Wait! Is this the guy you were telling us about? One of the silencers", Jabra asked.

"I told you I wouldn't stop pursuing you all...though by the looks of it, you've changed quite a bit", Montague replied as he stared at the group. He took particular note of Borya and Kalifa, looking quite different now. "Looks like you look decent no matter what you wear it seems, he said to Kalifa."

"Thats harassment", Kalifa replied as he adjusted his glasses. Again, he might have hit the nail on the head, in some senses. "I've gotten much stronger btw. So if you want to fight me, I'll destroy you this time!"

"Hm...dont get me wrong, we are still tasked with killing you all. However, I'm not an idiot. Trying to fight all of you at once by myself would be unwise. Let me ask you this, however. What are you doing on such a strange island. And what's all this talk about an army? Could it be that I've stumbled upon a base of the revolutionary army", Montague asked as he smirked.

"Oh no! I can't let him find out about the resistance", Iva thought to himself.

"Revoluti...what? There's no REAL army here. Just Iva's island full of Okama people", Raymond said. Everyone looked over to him, with a surprised facial expression. She was up to something. He was talking about the army of Okama people ready to put makeup on us", Raymond said as she looked over towards Iva and winked.

"...oh! Of course! As you can see, I already prepped them for their new look, now all that's left is the last part of their makeover", Iva said. His friends all seemed to pull out makeup. Even though it was a bluff", they seemed to be prepared.

"Hm...is that so? I don't quite know if I believe that...then again, I don't actually care. It would have been a nice bonus, but my mission isn't to hunt for the revolutionary army. It's to kill you group of goons", Montague said. He raised his hand, and dozens of government agents began to surround the group.

"What the!? He must have ships docked on this island somewhere", Fukurou said.

"Oh this doesn't seem to good now does it", Sandersonia said.

"Whatever they have going on does not concern me. I only came to deliver the message", Boa replied. Iva, change me back so I can be on my way."

"Very well", Iva said as he did just that. With a small poke, he turned her back into a woman.

Jabra cracked her knuckles "It doesn't matter how many people you send. We won't give up until we've found the truth!" Come at us!"

"Destroy all of them", Montague called out as he raised his hand. The government agents all pulled out guns and prepared to fire at the group.

"Sky Glow", Raymond called out as she threw some firecrackers down. A gray light enveloped the area, giving the group the opportunity to spread of. "If you couldn't beat us alone, what made you think you'd be able to beat us all whilst we were together?"

"Dont lose track of them, they're above you", Montague shouted. However, it was too late. The group descended down upon the enemy quicker than expected.

"No matter what's happened to our bodies, our strength remains. Allow us to demonstrate", Kumadori said as she used her staff to whack on of the imposing agents. Sure enough, it sent him skipping across the water like a stone.

"Not to mention we've gotten a lot stronger over the months." Kalifa pulled a thorny whip from the bag around his waist. "Thorny road!" The whip shot through the air and smacked multiple enemies.

"If you so happen to see 'Cannibal' tell him we're coming for him"", Serenity said. He made several vines sprout from the ground and grab hold of the agents.

"Hm. What's this? They claim they've gotten stronger, but they seem to be purposely keeping their enemies alive? Meeting these people has made them soft... how sickening", Montague said as shook his head. He jumped out of the way of an incoming kick from Fukurou. "Faster than I thought you'd be!"

"Mr Montague, we'll handle them", another agent said as he aimed a gunned and fired at Gurin.

"You've got to do better than that", Gurin shouted as he managed to literally dodge the bullet. "Hehe. You guys are nothing compared to HER", she said as she recalled her past battle with Rafflesia. She then punched the man in his face, sending him across the sand.

"Looks like they didn't need help after all, eh snake princess", Iva said.

"Their stronger than they look, I'll give them that much", Boa replied.

"Time to put on a show, with my Catherine wheel!" Raymond pulled the string on another one of her fireworks, with a circular shape, then threw it like a frisbee. Flames ignited in several spots around it, and twirled straight ahead of him. Knocking over several enemies and igniting them in the process. They all scrambled quickly to extinguish themselves in the sea.

"Oh, this is exciting! Allow me to assist", Iva said as he hopped over to the sand. "Death wink!" He winked and blasted a soldier into the sea ahead of him.

"Wow, that was... interesting", Raymond said as she got an idea.

"Tch, should have known it would go this way. It's no issue...I only needed to push you a little bit more in the right direction", Montague said. He observed his men being tossed, left and right by the group of ex agents and their friends. He clapped both of his hands together, and the swarm of agents stopped! "Retreat! I think I got what I needed!"

"Oh no! We won't let you get away", Gurin shouted. Right as he was about to move in to attack, he vanished into thin air. "What's with that!?"

"I don't think that's a regular shave", Blueno said as she began to ponder something. "Is there another technique they learned?"

"Hey, wait for us!" All the agents began to flood the sea in an attempt to get away from the battle. Though one of them seemed to waver slightly out of line. "Keep this as a memento", he yelled as he aimed a gun at Raymond...", before he could even pull the trigger, something pink flew out of nowhere and shot HIM instead. Even more strange, is that he became completely incased in stone.

"Hm...just so you know, I would have dodged that", Raymond said, as she looked at Hancock and smiled.

"Dont get all happy. A man fighting dirty just displeases me. I still dislike you", she replied.

"Yeah, I still dislike you as well...but at least your not as obnoxious as you were before."

"Hmph! Maybe my powers will work on you now", she said as she cupped her hands and aimed at him.

"Eh, lets not find out." She probably didn't actually plan on firing, but better safe than sorry. "Iva, if you would? We have somewhere to be."

"Very well. Hormone laser party!" He utilized the move again to reverse them all back to their original genders. After a moment of red lasers and intesnse tingling again, the each changed again.

"Oh! My chest doesn't feel so light anymore", Moira said as she ran her hands over her chest.

"That's harassment", Kalifa said.

"How so? Its my own chest."

"Looks like everything's back to normal", Raymond said.

"Why did you do that", Iva asked. Why did you make up such a weird, yet very tempting story?"

"Oh that? Well, I figured since we brought them here by accident, I should at least throw them off your trail. Afterall, when it comes to choosing sides, I think its safe to say we'd side with the rebels over the government right now. But you may want to be careful, they may not have given up on this area quite yet.

"Not to worry. We've eluded them all this time, and all other times will be no different! Say...you all would make great additions to the revolutionary army."

"A tempting offer, but we have a mission to do. Plus...I don't think these guys would fit in too well", Raymond said as he motioned over to Kumadori, Fukurou and Jabra.

"Hey! what are you trying to say", Jabra yelled!

"He's trying to say we wouldn't fit in because of what we did", Fukurou blabbed.

"Shut your trap", he snapped back as he zipped Fukurou's mouth.

"This is starting to give ME a headache. Let's be on our way", Boa said as she boarded her ship. "Get that floating eyesore out of here, before I take off", she urged.

"Ugh that...", Raymond said before taking a deep breath. "Just ignore her", He said whilst trying to hold back Moira from possibly wrecking Boa's ship.

"Well THAT happened! Now where to next", Gurin asked.

"According to this map, Iva gave us...it appears that the next island is called, Malina Island. That's a strange name."

"Malina? Is it named after a woman? No...wait, maybe not...", Gurin replied as she tried to think about what the name could possibly mean. Her thoughts were interrupted by a sudden noise coming from the hallway.

"Nooooo, I must ask that you cease this at once Raymond", Kumadori said as he sprinted down the hall.

"Kumadori, wait! I just want to see if I can change your hair color to blue!" Its not permanent", he yelled as he pursued Kumadori, whilst holding some sort of device.

"Well, he certainly returned to his ol- wait, what!? Raymond no! If your going to change it, at LEAST make it green", Gurin yelled as she too gave chase. Kumadori could be heard yelling through the halls.

"Hehehe. Ah. I feel like I'm home again", Serenity said. She began to remember her old comrades. "I promise you Benson. I'll get Cannibal and end his life. Serenity clenched her fist tightly.


	7. That Fuzzy Feeling-1

That's the freshest fruit money can buy. You won't find anything better than that", Serenity said. She placed a bowl on the table in front of her.

"Well that's nice and all, but why are you trying to CHARGE us for them", Fukurou asked.

"Hey, I got to make a profit too you know. Gurin and I are the only ones who can grow food on this ship.

"Oh, bother! Gimme and apple", Raymond said as he tossed a gold piece at her. She took an apple out of the basket and gave him one that looked quite fresh. He quickly bit into it and smiled. "Wow, that IS pretty good. Now that task at hand?"

"Oh, right! The Malina island one, right? So, what do you think will happen to us this time", Gurin asked.

"What do you mean?"

"The last two islands we visited, something happened to us. I mean at Birth island, someone nearly turned us back into babies. The last island someone switched our genders. What's next, turn into old people?"

"Dont even suggest that", Jabra yelled. I'd rather be a child again than a frail old man.

"I agree. Though I do wonder what Some of us might look like at a more ripened age", Kumadori replied.

"I bet I'd still be beautiful. No matter what befalls me", Kalifa said.

"Careful, your starting to sound like that 'bag lady' from the last island", Raymond replied.

"Oh are you still on that? Perhaps you should take up smoking. A good stress reliever."

"Hey, Hey! There will be no smoking in this ship. You know how hard it is to get that smell out", Moira said. Look, we'll be landing soon anyways, smoke all you want then."

"Hey, tell us about Lucci and Kaku", Borya said. I mean considering who you all used to be we have a general idea, but..."

Blueno stopped flipping through the book he was reading. Kaku was a little bit friendlier than the rest of us. I mean most of that was an act but generally he was probably easier to approach. He had the Ox-Ox fruit, Giraffe model.

Jabra busted out laughing. He was a SQUARE giraffe! Bahahahahah"

"ANYWAYS, he had just acquired it right before our battle with the strawhats."

"It was also literally the same time I had acquired mine. That reject Spandam gave us each one", Kalifa chimed.

"Then there's Lucci", Kumadori said. "He was quite the skilled fighter. He was stronger than all of us. Nearly all of us combined, and that was without his devil fruit."

"Indeed! To put it frankly, he was a sociopath. Somewhat Sadistic, and merciless. He wouldn't hesitate to kill, especially someone he deemed weak", Blueno said. And like Jabra he also had a carnivorous zoan devil fruit. A leopard to be precise. That only made him more aggressive."

This caused a lot of confusion amongst the newcomers, until Raymond spoke up. "So, WHY do we want to find HIM exactly?"

"Well, he changed a lot after the incident. Or at least that's what I saw. Until that incident with the candy pirates. Sorry, that might have been a bit more vulgar than I meant it to be, but we obviously had no intention of sugar coating the truth."

"Nah, its ok. We knew what we signed up for when we agreed to travel with you all. But I have to say, this kind of makes me uneasy. You said he's working for the government again. Doesn't that make him our enemy", Borya asked.

"And even if It didn't it doesn't actually sound like he's very stable. Whats to stop him from wanting to bring harm to us", Gurin asked.

"Well, we're kind of playing this by ear. Our goal is to find out if there's a special reason he's working for them. And don't worry, we won't let him hurt any of you", Kalifa assured. That was a nice feeling. Though actions spoke louder than words, it still made everyone uneasy. Then again, that was common when facing the unknown.

"Land Ho! I've always wanted to say that", Gurin said. "Look! The islands very, brown like. It looks like a dog."

"Very fuzzy, like this gal here", Raymond said as he held his pet tarantula in his hands.

Kalifa shaved backwards and Jabra cringed and moved to his left. "Put that damn thing away", he shouted.

"Her name is BLUE, and she's highly venomous", Raymond said as he chuckled. "Whats the matter. You two aren't afraid of spiders are you?"

"I'm gonna crush that thing! This is for your own good", Jabra said as he came closer.

"Sorry, but nope. STAR PUPIL!" A small gray light popped out of his eye and impacted into Jabra knocking him over.

"What the hell!", Jabra said as he stood up.

"My glasses. I have plenty of technology that helps me in battle. That was ONE of the abilities."

"Land! I think! It looks so strange", Fukurou shouted out. "Come on, let's go see what's up!" He quickly hopped off the boat and onto the land. The second he hit the sand, something even stranger happened! Fukurou's normally round body had disappeared. Not only that, but there was something now sitting where he was standing. It was an OWL! An owl with green feathers!

"What the!? Where'd Fukurou go", Moira asked. She held her head out towards the beach, but she saw nothing but the owl.

"Hey! Hey, Moira", a voice said. It sounded like Fukurou's.

"Fukurou? Where are you? I can hear you but I can't see you!"

"Here! Here!" The owl flapped up and down trying to get Moira's attention. Fukurou's voice... was coming from the owl!

"W-what!?" Moira fell over onto the island in shock, and the second she did, she also shrunk. More like she turned into a bluebird. "What the actual hell!?"

"One of those things, you were talking about earlier, eh Gurin", Raymond said as he walked over towards the edge of the ship.

"Probably. Does it turn people into birds, she asked."

"Only one way to find out", Blueno said as he hopped over the helm himself. He didn't actually shrink. He instead actually grew slightly. He turned into an actual BULL! "Well, its definitely not just birds."

"So do we just turn into animals when we step on the island", Serenity asked. "That doesn't seem too bad. We still need more supplies as well, so whatever", she exclaimed before landing on the island. She instantly warped into a deer, with green fur."

"Well, I think it's pretty obvious what me, Borya and the dog are going to turn into. Come on, Kumadori-San", she shouted as she held onto Kumadori and jumped onto the island. As expected, she transformed into her dragoness form. Wow! And that wasn't even on purpose." Her body stretched across the sand.

"Hahah! With a mighty roar, and a mane that rivals the great Komainu! I am Kumadori, the lion", Kumadori shouted. He transformed into a lion with a pink main. Even his makeup remained.

"Wow! Aren't they all adorable", Raymond said.

"I take it you like animals then? Baaaaaa", Kalifa said as she spoke from on the beach sand. She had turned into a sheep. Jabra too also seemed to wait impatiently in wolf form.

"Was the sheep noise really nessesary, Kalifa?" He was answered with a nod. Very well, lets get this over with", Raymond said as he hopped onto the sand. He then transformed into a fox. "Gah! A fox? Hm, I half expected some sort of feline, or an eagle or something.

"I expected a rodent. Gahahah", Jabra said.

"Very funny, you jackass. Hey wait a minute, if there are other residents here, does that mean everyone we talk to will be an animal?"

"How interesting! I bet SOMEONE here has to know how to get to Levely", The kangaroo that is Borya, said. They all gazed deeper onto the island ahead of them. It was hard to see past the sand and brown grass mixture...but there was something very unsettling about this place. Something was giving them this feeling from deep within the jungle.


	8. That Fuzzy Feeling-2

"This entre situation is prePAWsterous", Raymond, said.

"No...NO! No puns! NO PUNS", Blueno called out. They all, seemed to be traveling through the tall shrubbery that hopefully led to some form of civilization.

"Yes. It's torture, and frankly I know torture", Serenity replied.

"Oh my DEER Serenity. Am I bothering you as well? Ah well, If you don't want to deal with my BULL then OWL be quiet. And I'm not LION", Raymond went on.

"Oh, your puns DRAG-ON. They might say its KangaRUDE, but a little BLUEBIRD told me that it makes you all feel SHEEPISH", Gurin went on.

"I'm afraid we may have to kill them", Blueno said.

"It's our best option if we want them to stop", Kalifa replied.

Raymond hopped onto a large rock nearby. "You could try, but it wouldn't take much effort to outFOX you."

"Oh, that's it! I...", Jabra began to say but he suddenly stopped. "Wait, do you hear that? It sounds like some kind of machine. Some kind of vehicle." Everyone stopped and listened closely in an attempt to hear what Jabra may have been hearing. Wait, hit the deck!

Instinctively, everyone jumped out of the way of some kind of tractor, plowing through the woods. It was moving surprisingly fast for one actually. It was big, brown and even had the round blades on them. It mowed down everything in its path, leaving soft soil in its wake. "Hey! You road hog", Fukurou yelled out.

A fuzzy black head popped out of the driver's seat. It looked to be some kind of canine. "Sorry! Still learning how to drive without apposable thumbs", he said. The Tractor seemed to swerve as he tried to get control, but eventually continued on down its original path.

"Hey look straight ahead! It made a path towards the city. I see buildings", Moira shouted as she flew forward. The building all looked like normal houses, but just as expected, the townspeople all seemed to be animals as well. There were alligators, tigers, rhino's, cats, dogs, frogs, rabbits, and everything from ants to zebra's roaming around in the city. "Now we just have to find the supply store.

"Well that shouldn't be too hard. Why don't we all split up and regroup here once we find everything we need", Raymond said. "I wonder if I can find some new parts for another machine here."

"Yeah, you get on that. I'm gonna go find the booze store, Jabra said.

"I wonder what kind of coffee they have on this island. Might be a chance to add to my collection."

"Honestly Borya, is coffee the only thing you ever think about", Blueno asked as he followed the hopping kangaroo.

"Fancy plates? Not the best thing to carry on an island full of people who cant use thumbs", the green deer said. "Why would you want to buy these anyway? They have much less expensive plates.

"Only the good stuff. I never served cheap plates to customers, and my friends shouldn't eat from cheap plates either", Borya replied.

"Well, if you insist. I have my eye on that flask", Blueno said. He seemed to have his head down grazing on grass.

"Does that actually taste good or are you just playing the part?"

"I can't stop eating it. It's so good. Like pasta in grass form. Far from dignified, but I guess it passes in a city full of animals."

"Who need dignity when you can do this without being judged", Serenity asked as she too began to graze on the grass.

"Ok, ok, quick lunch break and then we'll pick up the shopping again...wow, this taste pretty good. I'll save some of this for later." Borya plucked multiple patches of grass and stuffed it into his pouch.

Blueno ceased eating for a moment. "Borya, I never got around to asking this, but aren't female kangaroos the ones who have pouches? Why do you have one?"

"Interesting question. I wondered the same thing when I saw the form for the very first time. It was just one of the abilities given by the devil fruit I suppose. It must have also carried over when I got to this island. It's pretty handy as well."

"Hey! Are you three just gonna sit there eating grass, or are you going to buy something", The store owner said. She was a blue haired poodle equipped with jewelry all over.

Serenity stopped eating as well. "Alright, fine, what do you have that might be useful for long traveling?"

"Why did HE have to come along", Gurin asked. She was motioning over to Jabra.

"Because I don't trust him being around normal people by himself. Just between you and I, he's too socially distraught to be left alone", Raymond replied.

"Hey I heard that! I'm stable", Jabra shouted.

"I know the feeling. Kumadori doesn't exactly fit in with the norm either. Then again, we're not a normal group, nor is our current situation. Either way, he already got his beer, so what parts are you looking for?"

"Pretty much anything salvageable. Once I do that, I usually come up with something useful after a while. Maybe I can make us something that will make finding those two easier."

"Are you referring to Rob Lucci", a voice said. It seemed to talk very sluggishly.

"Huh? Who said that? Who's there", Jabra asked.

"Up here. Waaaaay up in the tree", the voice replied. Up in a nearby tree, the group spied a monkey. It seemed to be wearing jacket fitting of an admiral. He also had on yellow shades. Looks like I finally found you all."

"Wait a minute...that monkey looks familiar, Raymond said.

"That...THATS...", Jabra began to say.

"Thats Admiral Kizaru to you. What are the odds? Two ex-cipher pol agents, and their runaway friends.

"Oh no! Don't tell me even the admirals of the navy are after us too", Gurin said in shock. "This is bad...we've been found again!

"Indeed. Since even the silencers are unable to deal with you, we are tasked with killing you if we should happen to run into you. Though since I got bored, I intercepted your path. Sakazuki doesn't even know that you're all here. Though that's probably for the best. If you continue to become a pain in our sides, he may not be as forgiving as me. By the way, long time no see Raymond.

"You want to kill me even after you helped me so long ago? Tch, why am I not surprised? Forgiving my ass!"

"Don't take it personally, it's just business." He hopped down from the tree branch. "Now...which one of you wants to die first? You don't plan on struggling, do you?" His smile remained, and while it looked innocent, it was actually very irritating. Despite his intention to kill them, he smiled as if everything was right with the world. How frustrating.

"We will NOT go quietly! If you wish to fight us, then we shall return the favor", Kumadori said. He arched his back, and his mane seemed to spike up.

"That right Kumadori! You might have helped Raymond before, but we don't owe you anything! Not even our lives", Jabra shouted.

"We don't want to lead him to the others. Lets get this monkey off our backs!" Residence all stopped and began to stare. Not only was a battle imminent, but one of the admirals of the navy has personally come on business. Something terrible was about to go down!

Meanwhile further into the shopping district. Another familiar face stalks the group of Fukurou, Moira and Kalifa.

"Oh, hey, I think I know that horse! He used to be a government agent, and then he got fired for falling alseep on every mission. Oh, and that Elk over there, I heard she used to be a famous singer, but she couldn't stop hitting the bottle", Fukurou said as he flew around the two women.

"He's been doing this for about an hour. Does he have dirt on everyone", Moira asked.

The annoyance on Kalifa's face was apparent. "Unfortunately, yes. Make sure you keep your secrets away from him. Even the slightest secret might end up being your downfall. In short, he mouths might be his most dangerous weapon. Anyways, we seem to have gotten our food supply refreshed at least. I wonder if the others have gotten anything."

"Well, we're almost to the meeting spot anyway...wait...does anyone else feel like their being watched", Moira asked.

"Hm...it might be because a silencer is here", Fukurou shoutred.

"And WHY didn't you say that earlier", Moira replied.

"You truly are a bigmouth aren't you", a familiar voice said. After the three managed to pinpoint the source of the voice, they watched in utter surprise as a big brown bear walked over towards them. He was wearing a big hat, similar to Springer's. "Long time no see criminals.

"Springer! You again", Moira called out.

"And he's not alone", another feminine voice said. This one too was also familiar. A long red snake slithered across over to the area. "A shame we had to meet again like this.

"Rafflesia! I should have known you would attack again", Kalifa said. Awefully bold to be attacking out in the open huh?

"That's of no concern anymore. All that matters is that you all are exterminated. And after we wipe the floor with you all, the rest of your friends will be sent to the afterlife as well!


	9. That Fuzzy Feeling-3

"Just so you know, you can't escape me. Nor can you beat me. I am made of light after all."

"That may be so, but not even light can protect you from Haki", Raymond replied. "But we'll have to go for the KO if we want to escape him. From what I remember, he's fast. About as fast as light, so as long as he's still conscious we wont be leaving this island."

"He's likely more dangerous than a silencer. It's going to take a lot more effort to put him down", Gurin said.

"Then we accept your challenge! We have fought for our lives many times! This shall be no different", Kumadori said.

"Ohhhhhh. How exciting! Very well, let's begin!" Kizaru pointed out a glowing finger towards the group, and prepared to fire.

Jabra dashed forward in Zigzags moving quickly as he dashed along. "Just TRY and hit me!" His speed must have increased a lot over the time!

"Not so fast Jabra. Have you forgotten...", he said right before vanishing. ….I am light, he whispered as he appeared right next to Gurin with the intent on kicking her.

"Oh, no! Look out Gurin", Kumadori called out as he jumped in front of her and hardened his body. The kick impacted Kumadori, and even sent him flying to his right.

"Kumadori-San!"

"Ohhhh, he took the hit for you. That must have hurt."

"And so will this", Ramond said, as he dug both of his claws into the false monkey! "Ugh, fighting without weapons is gonna suck!"

"Hold him still Raymond, Jabra shouted.

It was easier said than done. It didn't take much effort for him to toss the false fox into the air. "Farewell", he said as he pointed a glowing finger up towards him.

"No you don't", Jabra yelled. The wolf latched onto Kizaru's leg. I never let my prey escape!"

"Who said anything about escaping?" He rapidly shook his leg in an attempt to shake Jabra off.

"Ugh... ah", do something", he said between muffled yells.

Gurin took a bite of a fruit she had stashed in her jacket pocket. "Try this on for size!" She rapidly spit out green flamed seeds at the admiral.

He tried to block them at first, thinking they were just flaming seeds. However, he did not realize that the green flame was much different from normal fire. It was enhanced, and had as much technique as Haki! The bullet impacted his palm and drew blood, but he reacted quickly and hopped out of the way. "Oh, that's a surprise. I have one too", he said as he pointed and fired a beam towards her. Her long body was too much of a target for the explosion, and it managed to blow her backwards.

"Stop it, you're destroying the city", Raymond yelled. His eyes flared as he watched the people flee from the city.

"Whats the problem. They can rebuild, can they not?"

"You...I cant believe someone who was kind enough to help me, would do this. My father was right, you really can't trust people nowadays"

"Oh, you poor deluded kid. I'm afraid you're under the impression that this is destruction. You haven't seen destruction yet", he said. His eyes seemed to almost be invisible behind the yellow glasses. He quickly warped over towards him. Jabra was tossed onto the ground in the process.

Raymond quickly held his arms out in front of him. They were somewhat stubby thanks to this false form, but luckily his Haki helped protect him from the kick attack. "Ugh! Ack! How dare you attack my friends!"

"Oh, you've grown a lot since I last met you. It's too bad, you didn't become a marine. You probably wouldn't be in this situation."

"That may be true. Though be that as it may, THIS is my life now. STAR PUPIL!" He shot a burst of energy through Kizaru's shoulder. It even managed to draw blood. "How do you like MY light?"

Kizaru zoomed backwards and up towards the tree. "What a surprised!? Who'd have thought you all were capable of actually hurting me? I can see it will take a little more effort to put you all down. Though I'm not actually trying, you've definitely caught my eye. "Now watch carefully. It could be the last thing you see." Kizaru held his hands together and created a yellow sphere of light.

Gurin, managed to stabilize her body and looked on ahead only to see the area being bathed in a yellow light. "Oh no! Whats he doing? He's going to level the town with that! We've got to stop him!"

Further into town, Kalifa, Fukurou, and Moira were in the middle of a confrontation of their own. Rafflesia and Springer returned in an attempt to take their revenge. "You two have NO chance of beating us. Not only have we got stronger, but there's three of us and two of you", Fukurou shouted. Just then, a huge explosion could be head coming from further outside the city. "What was that?"

"Ah, I take it Kizaru has found someone. Good, I hope he blasts them to hell", Springer said.

Moira stopped and thought for a second. Kizaru? You mean the admiral, right...wait! What!? An admiral of the navy is on this island too what for!?

"Hunting you goons of course! You've made an enemy of the entire government at this point!" Rafflesia slithered forward in the blink of an eye, and managed to catch Kalifa off guard. She wrapped around the sheep, quickly, but before she could stay for long, a "shigan" in the form of a beak from Fukurou stabbed her right in the side. The wool cushioned some of the paralyzing effect of the Shock-Shock fruit, and so did Fukurou's beak...but it still had somewhat of an effect.

"Her touches spread easier like this it seems, so I'll deal with her! You guys take care of Springer", Moira said as she flew over towards the three."

"Good, this will be payback then. I'll destroy you for Serenity. AND for Benson", Fukurou cried out."

"Then take your best shot, owl boy!" Springer hopped into the air and prepared to slam both of his claws down. Fukurou moved out of the way just in time. "I'll skewer you and each and every one of your friends for beating on me back on Zero Island!"

"And I owe YOU for your little bomb trap all last year. "Taste my feathery fists of fury!" Fukurou doled out multiple punches. Even in bird form they seemed to be effective, to deal some form of damage, but Springer was not please."

"You think those stupid feathers can hurt this fuzzy bear body?"

"No, but your nose is soft. Shigan!" POKE! Right in the springers soft nose!

"Ow! You little bird bastard!" He slammed his paw down onto Fukurou and pinned him. "Now to finish what I started!" That's what he thought at least, but his attack was interrupted by a swarm of bubbles washing over his body. "K-Kalifa". He said before falling to his knees."

"Now get ready for a baaaaash", Kalifa said as she rammed into the grounded bear.

"Ugh, not you too", Kalifa Moira said.

"Focus on me, doll. You know, snakes usually eat birds", Rafflesia said as she smiled, revealing two sharp fangs.

"You can eat CRAP for all I care", the shockwave traveled straight forward, but Rafflesia managed to slither out of the way.

"Storm leg!" Rafflesia created a shockwave with her tail, that zoomed past Moira's wing. The force from the attack managed to knock her to the ground! She quickly wrapped around her and squeezed tightly.

"Moira", Kailia called out. Just as she was about to charge over. A big fuzzy paw was brought down on she and Fukurou.

"See, you never stood a chance! Hatchet, Springer and I are particularly tough members of the silencer branch! The fact that you all beat us before must have just been dumb luck!"

It was becoming harder and harder for Moira to feel her body. The combination of binding and shock-shock fruit was making her body go numb. "Ack! Damn you Rafflesia!"

"Your starting to look quite appetizing! I wonder how you'd taste!" It almost seemed like she was drooling. Her pupils seemed to give off a very unsettling flare."

"Funny, I was just thinking the same thing", Springer replied as he stared down at the owl and sheep he managed to catch.

"Kalifa, these psychos are gonna try and eat us", Fukurou yelled." People all around were scattering from the battlefield in fear. Most of the civilians knew that when a fight ensued, it was best to stay out of it.

"Don't take it the wrong way. Call it a once in a lifetime craving", Springer replied. Several drops of saliva drizzled onto the ground.

"Bye bye birdy", Rafflesia said as she opened her mouth wide. She must have known Moira could yell since she was gripped so tightly. With little effort she shoved the bluebird into her jaws."

Fukurou gasped! "She...she ATE Moira!" It appeared that way...but soon after, something interesting happened.

A muffled yell was heard, and for a second, it looked like Rafflesias body inflated like a balloon. Moira flew right out of the snake's mouth! "What's the matter? Did I give you indigestion? The second you shoved me into your mouth, you stopped squeezing, and that gave me the opportunity for some heavy damage." Rafflesia's pupils had vanished as she wobbled from side to side, before falling over. It would seem the impact from Moira's attack on her insides caused enough damage to knock her unconscious.

Springer's attention quickly shifted over towards the two. "What!? She lost again?"

"Yeah, and so will you!" Kalifa's wool seemed to grow slick", and more bubbles shot out again", wrapping Springer up in a cloud of bubbles

"Ugh, not again!" The two were easily able to slide from underneath his claws afterwards.

"YES again! Let's turn him into a fuzzy honeycomb, Kalifa!

Back on the battlefield with admiral Kizaru, the dust from the previous blast was staring to clear. A lot more than ground had been destroyed. It looked as if some of the building had also been crumbled. "Ohhhhhh! Looks like I overdid it that time. Oh well. I wonder if any of them survived. That was quite an attack!"

"Alright, that's the plan", Raymond said. They were a bit dinged up from the explosion, but far from heavily injured. They took shelter just out of kizaru's sight, behind a bunch of big shrubs. Gurin was a bit bigger, so she had to stretch out further down. Luckily the smoke was still thick enough to mask them a bit. "Kumadori, are you ok?"

"Worry not! I can execute the plan, most...", was all he said before they all shushed him!

"Alright! I didn't anticipate him being this strong, OR fast, and we're at too much of a disadvantage. Jabra's not used to fight in animal form, Gurin's too big a target like this, and I can't use any of my dangerous weapons with these tiny paws. We're going to have to strike HARD and get away quickly. That's where you come in, Gurin."

"Right. I can fly us all back to the ship once you execute the plan.

"Maybe they already perished...", Kizaru said to himself.

"He's too stupid to use his Haki it seems. Either way we should treat it like it our only chance. You all ready", Jabra asked. Everyone knodded, and took positions. Gurin stayed low to the ground and flew towards the left of the Kizaru. With great speed, Kumadori moved towards the right. The two were on the sides of the admiral.

"Ohhhh, you were alive afterallllll. That's unfortunate."

"We'll show you unfortunate", Jabra yelled. He and Raymond both charged forward and jumped.

"Then I'll just have to...", Kizaru began to say as he pointed. Suddenly, he felt something wrap around his right arm and pulled it. It was pink hair! Another bunch of it wrapped around his right leg. His left arm and left leg were also wrapped by Gurin's hair.

"You have fallen into a trap, that we call, WRATH OF THE FOREST", Kumadori said. The combined hair of the two managed not only wrap around Kizaru, but he ground next to him. The attack was made, so that If the opponent managed to escape, from the bind, they would land on more hair, and be ensnared again.

"You two are up. Quick", Gurin yelled."

"Now its time for our combine attack! Cresent cleave", Raymond shouted. Jabra swiped his foot horizontally left to right, while Raymond did the same, only right to left. They both made a big X shade wind blade. The blade flew quickly, and impacted Kizaru dead on.

To Kizaru's shock, they managed to draw more blood from him. All he could do was gasp as the hair loosened from him. The force of the scythes knocked him onto his back. "They caught me off guard...", he said. Despite that, he still seemed to be so nonchalant about it.

Kumadori hopped onto Gurin's neck. Right before she zoomed off. "Hurry, hop on! We're getting out of here."

Jabra and Raymond both hopped onto her back. "Tell, Akainu to suck an egg", Jabra yelled! Al four of them vanished from the battlefield in an instant.

"Oh dear. I suppose I should report this in. Hello? Hellooooo? Helllooooo", Kizaru asked repeatedly into what he thought was his baby snail transponder. Unfortunately for him, he was speaking into the black snail. The one that was only good for recording.

"Raymond, tell me where everyone is", Gurin said.

"Gotcha!" He activated his Observation Haki, and had a clear view of where everyone was. "To your left! Blueno Serenity and Borya are coming out of the pottery store. Everyone, get ready!" He, Jabra and Kumadori all prepared to grab hold of someone!

"Did you really need so many dishes, Borya", Blueno asjed.

"Of course! Especially since you all keep accidentally breaking them. Show some restraint with your strenght."

Serenity shook her head. "Its like you said, cheap plates will only...", that's all she had gotten to say before she Blueno and Borya were swept up by a zooming creature. Upon closer inspection, it was Raymond whom was on Gurin's back whom had grabbed hold of her. Even in fox form, his six powers training gave him enough strength to hold something bigger than he...though in such a comparing size, he still seemed to struggle to hold her. "Woah, woah! Where's the fire?"

"No time to explain yet! Raymond, where's our last three", Jabra asked. As he held Blueno by his leg, from his teeth, much to Blueno's surprise. Kumadori held onto to Borya, he appeared to be shoving dishware into his pouch in an attempt to stop them from flying all over the place.

"Make a left up here... there's another person with them...and what looks like a bear? They're both on the ground though, so it must have been a fight here as well. More marines?"

"Either way, we've got to get back to the SkyDancer. Get ready", Gurin said as she sped up.

"They were definitely more threatening when we encountered them last year", Kalifa said as she eyed the two downed silencers.

"Hah! We should finish em off before they try to come after us again."

Moira looked pretty hesitant at first. While she has never killed anyone, she probably wouldn't be opposed to doing so, against someone who was trying to kill her or her friends. She probably wouldn't feel good about it, but still. "If that's what takes, so be it." Luckily, an easier choice was made for her, and she along with the other two combatants were swooped up by the passing dragoness.

"Are you three ok", Borya asked.

"Dont tell me that was...", Gurin began to say.

"Yeah, it was rafflesia AND Springer. They attacked us out in the open. Where are we going", Fukurou asked loudly.

"Back to the ship!" Flying back made the journey much faster than it did with them walking. They were there in a matter of minutes this time! Even though they were by the ship, they were still in their animal forms. This SHOULD be remedied the second they get back on the ship. "Is everyone ok?"

"I'll be ok when I can walk on two legs again", Raymond said as he hopped up onto the ship, and as they expected, he reverted back to normal. "Oh! How I have missed you", he said as he kissed his own thumbs. "Next time I see that admiral I'm going to shove a rocket up his ass and set it off!"

"Thats harassment", Kalifa said as she patted him on the head."

"Oh you don't know the half of it, sister!"

"Don't worry, we'll get him next time. Great enthusiasm though.

"Thank goodness! I don't stick out as much being my regular human form. Where to next", Gurin asked.

"Anywhere that's not here. While we were talking to that shopkeeper, I got a new lead that might help us. Its not Levely we need to be aiming for. It a place called Last Call", Serenity said. Everyone exchanged looks of confusion. This one DEFINETLY didn't sound like something any of them would have heard. "Hey, I'm just as confused as you are...but we've been in unknown territory for quite some time now. This should be no different right. Come on, we're almost there", she said with a smile.

Everyone else gave a smile as well, but they were interrupted by another random explosion further onto the island. "Is that dope blasting away in an attempt to find us", Raymond asked.

"I don't know...but lets go! The last thing we honestly need is to draw attention to ourselves", Kalifa replied.

That night, aboard the skydancer, everyone tried to settle down after the day's events. "So the two idiots just attacked us out of nowhere. Sure they had us pinned for a second, but they weren't as strong as they were before", Fukurou said.

"Well, we're all clearly getting stronger. I don't think they're actually training anymore, just tailing us", Jabra said.

"I wont be able to sleep tonight. I think my adrenaline is still going. This is giving me the chills...but in a good way", Raymond said as he rubbed his arms.

"Strange huh? As scary as he sounds, im looking forward to meeting him. I wonder how far away this place is anyway. How long do you think we'll be traveling", Gurin asked.

Blueno looked out into the night sky. The stars seemed to give off some sort of strange glow. As if they were warning the group...was a a warning for something good, or for something tragic? "Thats going to be our next mission. We need to find out as much as we can before proceeding."


	10. Last Call Prelude

After wandering the seas for what must have been days, the group finally decided to stop at the next island to replenish. They didn't get to get as many supplies at the last island considering they were attacked out of the blue. It worked out pretty well anyways, since they had to ask around about Last Call anyways. The island they were currently on was called full bloom island. An appropriate name considering it was covered in flowers from head to toe. Blue, yellow, white, red green, and purple flowers were all over the place. There was another quirk to this island however... all the inhabitants seemed to look like walking flowers! As they approached the shoreline, the pollen and pedals brushed by very frequently. For most of them it tickled their noses.

"Everyone feel ok? Noone feel like a weed of some sort", Kalifa asked as she examined her own body. The group was fully prepared to accept any possible changes to their bodies, after their last few transformations when landing on past islands. Though everything SEEMED to be normal for them all.

"I think we're all good this time. If something were to happen, it would have happened by now." Fukurou rubbed his nose, after it seemed to have been tickled by the wandering pollen.

"It is heavily pollinated here, so I'm not surprised if anyone has some sort of reaction to it, but that might be the worst-case scenario. Now, where do we start", Raymond asked as he looked around.

Blueno stepped forward to get a better look at the surroundings. "Be cautious. Though they may look like flowers, it could just be a façade.", he stepped up to one of the passing flower people. It had orange pedals all around its head, but its extremities looked humanoid. It also had leaves sticking out of various limbs. "Pardon me", he said.

"Yes? Welcome to Full Bloom Island. Where everyone here is as beautiful as the island itself. What can I do for you stranger?"

"We were hoping you could give us some information on an island called 'Last Call'. We are trying to head there but..."

The flower person quickly perked up, but not in a good way. The second it heard the name last call; it nearly lost its color. It quickly ran off towards a nearby plant person. "Well that was strange", Gurin said. What was that all about? It was so happy and cheery when it welcomed us, but as soon as we asked it about Last Call, it ran off."

"I'm not surprised. From what it sounded like, the place is probably as dangerous as it gets, in the new world. Though that does worry me a bit", Serenity added. The flower creature looked as if it were whispering to the other creature it ran over towards. The other one replying to it nodded and walked over towards the group. "Oh, its coming back!"

"Greeting! I was told your all looking for Last Call." I feel as though I should warn you. The place is very dangerous. We don't tend to tell people about it for just that reason", the purple flowered creature said.

"It's ok. We're going there of our own free will. There's someone we're looking for, and we're set on finding them. If something happens, it's on us. We won't hold you responsible", Moira said.

"Its not that at all. Is just, we worry about people's wellbeing. HOWEVER, if you insist on going there, we do urge you to make sure you are prepared to the fullest."

Raymond nodded. "Well, we do have to get supplies anyway. I guess it wouldn't kill us to spend on day here...or would it", he asked. He was still suspicious of the reaction the other flower gave once it heard about their destination.

"Whats wrong? Are you wary of us? We are a race of flower people that are often referred to as Floral pacifists. In fact, our bodies are too soft and fragile for combat."

"Hm...I believe that's actually legit. I heard about this race of flowers before actually", Serenity said. "They rely on spores and pollen to neutralize and troublesome enemy. They would have done so by now if they meant us any harm."

"Fine, fine. Let's just get our supplies and set up camp somewhere", Jabra said. He began to walk towards the way of what seemed like a city, but he stumbled for a quick second, catching himself before falling. That was pretty strange. Though there was plenty of grass all around the shore, it would probably not make the best camping area. They were much too close to the sea, and that would attract the attention of anyone trying to hunt them. They would have to go deeper into plant like city.

"Once you have gotten your vittles, and refreshed, come to the tall beansprout building in the center of town in the morning. That's where our mayor is", the purple flowered being yelled to them.

As expected, there was plant life all around the city. The thing that was unexpected however, was that all the houses were actually made of fruits and vegetables. One house was made out of a turnip. One was made from a carrot, several from pumpkins, and so forth. They looked to be cleaned pretty well, being able to house inhabitants. From the looks of it, there were the normal human looking people here as well, on the streets, and in some of the houses. Many of them were red faced, as if they were drunk, while some seemed to be not so red faced, but almost looked to have been drinking. "Is this town known for having a lot of booze or something", Borya asked. "These people look like they've been drinking all day.

"Maybe they have been. I mean this is probably one of the few places in the world where you can relax without worrying about being attacked", Gurin replied. "How are we going to find the shops? Every building here looks like a veggie."

"I...guess we'll just have to browse around until we see something that resembles what we're looking for, right", Serenity said. Even she was stumped. Her next guess was just to find the bigger buildings. "Look, that looks promising! There's a sign there", she said as she pointed to a big yam styled house. In most cases, those with heightened senses could smell it, or any other vegetable here, but thanks to the seemingly endless ambush of pollen floating around, it was nearly hard to distinguish. Though once they approached the sign, they noticed that they couldn't read it. It was complete gibberish. "Well that's, odd."

"It's more than odd, it's ridiculous. I saw another sign like this on the way into this city, but I thought it just wasn't finished or something", Jabra said. "Some kind of flower language or something?"

"Its as clear as day! Surely you can read it", a pink pedaled flower creature said. It had a more feminine voice.

Raymond shook his head in annoyance. "Really? Then tell us what it says."

"Its the town shop of course. You'll see pretty much anything you'll need in this place. I think...maybe", the creature said as it walked off.

Fukurou opened the door, and stared around the corner. "Oh, it was right. There is a lot of stuff in here. And it smells like yams too. Shocker huh?"

"It looks like most of this stuff is vegetables, which Gurin and I could grow...but I suppose it would be a bit faster if we just purchase some more things", Serenity said as she examined a cactus styled vegetable sitting on the table. At that second, she felt something strange. As if they were being watched. "Does anyone else feel like they're being watched?"

"No. But I do feel a bit uneasy. I feel... something familiar. I hope there isn't any silencers around here", Raymond said. He looked around as if he detected something in the air...but he only saw plant creatures. Even using his haki he couldn't seem to sense anything. But something was still off. "Lets just get whatever we need, and get out of here."

"Ok guys! Let's make a plan of action! So, let's split up into groups tomorrow. The town is small, but it's still easy to get lost. If we're going to find out as much information on Last Call, we're going to have to be thorough in our search. But there's something else we need to go over", Kalifa said. Everyone leaned in closely after seeing a more defined seriousness on her face. "I know you all have been following us up to this point, but this will probably be a level of danger that even us ex agents can't comprehend. It was one thing to fight the silencers to help us...but from what violet had told us, cannibal and his colleagues are going to be a threat we may not even be able to combat. Not to mention our whole Lucci and Kaku situation.

"What are you getting at Kalifa", Moira asked.

"If you are going to come with us, we cant guarantee you will walk out with your lives. This will be a battle that could kill any of us at any moment."

Jabra nodded and stood up. "She's right. It's a risk that might not be wise for people who aren't feeling up to it. And there's NO shame in that. If anyone feels that they cant go after hearing this, we wont blame you."

"I've come too far to turn tail and run. This is my first adventure out to sea, and its NOT going to end in failure", Moira said.

Serenity was also unmoving. "I gotta make sure you guys live through this. I want to see you all prosper."

"I cant let any of you go in alone. You'll need my strength", Borya added.

"I'll see this through to the end. Whether it be bitter or sweet", Raymond said.

"Then we'll all be going then. We'll do this together", Gurin added.

Kalifa smiled. "It's true then...I've found my family", she thought to herself. "Ok everyone, then it's a plan!"

"Coffee anyone", Borya asked. As per usual, he pulled out his coffee pot from nowhere.

"You bet", Raymond replied as he and Kalifa both grabbed mugs and presented them.

"Ah what the hell, give me some too", Jabra said. "It's been a while since I've had some coffee anyway. Everyone else gathered around for a mug of coffee. The group stayed up for a while talking about other things in front of the crackling fire. They were increasingly anxious, but not because of the coffee, but because of what might be in store for them. They occasionally wondered what might be ahead of them in the future. But soon it would be time for them to rest. They need to get as much rest as possible for the morning.

The sun shined, down upon them from the now orange like sky. That was strange. The sky was rarely ever a different color. Even the area around seemed to give off an orange like glow. Despite them having a whole ship to sleep in, they had decided against it, in favor of camping out on the island. They had to mask their ship, in order to prevent detection from outside threats. Not only that, but it was best to be closer to the city, in case they had to quickly lose an enemy. They did not wake up as they normally should have, for something was definitely off. They felt groggy, and somewhat tired. Their heads were hurting. Most of them have never fallen ill before, so it must have been a new experience.

"Oh, my head is pounding! Borya what did you put in that coffee", Raymond asked.

"Nothing. It was my usual East Blue roast. It's fairly new as well", he replied. He didn't seem to want to get up, but they had work to do.

"Perhaps its all of this pollen. It's clearly not normal, but I mean that's still no cause for concern. It's all over the island, so we'll probably feel like this until we leave", Gurin added.

Kumadori rose up still feeling pretty strange himself. "Then we must make haste, and find the information that we need if we want to free ourselves of this curse!" Though curse was an obvious exaggeration, he himself had probably never been sick before. If so, not many times before. Their current objective was to head to the supposed beansprout tower in the city. Strangely none of them saw anything resembling such a thing when they went through the city the first time. Maybe they just overlooked it?

"Does anyone see any beansprout shaped building", Blueno asked.

"No! All I can see is orange powder", Jabra replied. Can we just blow all this crap away?"

Serenity shook her head. "That would only be a temporary solution and would take more energy than it's worth. We just have to suck it up and keep moving." They did just that. They split up into a few groups and searched around the city for what felt like hours, but to no avail. They saw many vegetable shaped buildings but no beansprout tower. After their fruitless...or in this case beansproutless search, they all rendezvous back at the center of town, in front of a big pumpkin. "Any luck?"

"Not an ounce! I could barely tell anything apart anymore. I think my vision is starting to get blurry", Gurin said. She wanted to rub her eyes so bad, but that would only make things worse.

Raymond began to cough. "Now that you mention it, it is getting harder to see. Everyone...I have a bad feeling again. Maybe we should chance our luck with finding the island ourselves."

"I agrr...achoo! Oh! I agree! This pollen isn't as normal as we thought it was", Kalifa said

"What's the matter? You don't like the disrupting powder, made by the townspeople", a voice said from somewhere.

"Who's there? Show yourself", Jabra yelled as he frantically searched the area. He couldn't see much...but he did notice Raymond had one of the most cautious looks on his face.

"Have your forgotten my voice already, dog? I guess it has been a while, hasn't it? The source of the voice finally revealed itself. As, a tall Stingray man approached the group. He had a circular mass of water covering his head like a helmet, but it was obvious to Jabra and Raymond who it was. "You all fell right into my little trap.

"H-Hatchet! It...its you!" Right after he said that, Raymond fell to the ground.

"R-Raymond...what...", Moira said before she too fell to the ground. Everyone around began to feel very off...as the world around went from orange...to black. Soon enough, everyone was down...

In-between trips to and fro the dream world...they occasionally regained consciousness long enough to tell that they were being transported. They were at first transported by hand...then they could see the orange sky around...before blacking out again. Once they woke once more, they could see and feel that they were on a boat...it definitely wasn't the SkyDancer, that was for sure. They must have been transported on another boat. There wasn't much time to assess the situation. Darkness loomed upon them again, and this time they slept for quite some time. Until being splashed by what seemed to be water. This time, they were surrounded by an unfamiliar room. It didn't feel as though they were on a boat. It must have been a building of some sort.

"Rise and shine losers", Hatchet said. It was clear that he was the one who threw the water. "I didn't realize the plant people's pollen was so potent. Either way it seemed to work out in the end."

Raymond looked around and noticed that both his hands and legs were handcuffed. He was also in a cage alongside Gurin, Borya, Serenity and Moira. Each of them had cuffs on as well, but they seemed to be a bit different. He had seen those kinds of cuffs before. They were seastone cuffs. In another cage, the ex-agents were housed. Also wearing seastone cuffs, with Kumadori and Fukurou having ones that matched Raymond's. Hatchet! You! Everyone, wake up!"

Everyone began to shift, after waking up from a long sleep. They were still somewhat groggy, and wet thanks to the burst of water sent across the room. "Huh? What happened? Where are we", Blueno asked.

This is exactly where you wanted to be. Last call", Hatchet replied as he held out his arms. "So, wadda you think huh? Kinda homey huh?" It was a sarcastic question. The place was clearly a damp chamber of sorts. Possibly a prison.

"Very funny, you wet bastard...I...eh...", Jabra began to say. He had noticed that his strength had been greatly sapped by the cuffs. He wouldn't be able to do much of anything.

"Ugh! Are these seastone cuffs? I've had something like this on me once, with those ninja pirates. I don't like this", she growled slightly. A painful memory mixed with an insulting capture.

"Yeah, those were to stop you all from escaping. You see, the pollen in that town made the perfect trap."

Serenity shook her head rapidly. "Wait! You mean those flower people were in on this?"

"Well, sort of. Only two of them were. The first two flower people that you met. The purple headed one and the orange headed one. The ones who told you to look for the beansprout tower..."

"The one that didn't exist. It was all a ploy to keep us there, wasn't it", Fukurou asked.

"Indeed. Unfortunately for you, you all didn't realize that no one stays on Full Bloom island for longer than a few hours. The pollen is a natural relaxer...but extended inhalation of the pollen can affect your body in more ways than one."

"That explains why I stumbled when we first got there", Jabra yelled. And why our vision had started going bad the next day!"

"Yup. The poor flower people don't realize just how potent their pollen is. Well...two of them did. I paid them to misdirect you." this would explain why the two flower people were acting so weird.

"Alright, so you caught us! Big fuss! You think we cant break...out...of...these", Fukurou said. He was attempting to break free from the handcuff, but they just wouldn't give in. The cuffs were abnormally durable! "What the!?"

"Those cuffs were lined with haki by Cannibal himself. I bet you thought he wasn't aware that you were all trying to find him. But he's not the only one here who's aware that you were looking for him", Hatchet says as he pointed towards the door. The second he did, it opened, and in popped a familiar face!

Everyone around gasped in surprise. Their entire journey...more than half the reason they departed from zero island to begin with! "Lucci", Kalifa shouted.

"He looks much more unnerving in person. But something else is strange about him", Gurin though to herself.

"We've been looking all over for you! Where have you been", Jabra asked.

"I don't owe you an explanation...", that's all he said.

"What!? Where's Kaku", Blueno asked. Still, he got no response.

"Ouch...Oh well. He doesn't seem to be in the mood to talk, so allow me to explain your current situation. Robbie here found out about us targeting you all and the first thing he did was go pleading with Cannibal to call off the attack. To no avail of course...but then you all interfered!" He seemed to look at the group of non-agents as he said that. "And for a second, he was actually impressed...but of course our mission wasn't complete until you traitors were killed. And that's when Lucci decided that he'd talk to Cannibal, and this time, he actually bowed! Can you believe it!?" Lucci turned his head, once Hatchet said this. "He gave every possible reason as to why it would be more useful for you to be spared than to be killed. It obvious that he just didn't want you to die. I thought he was going to start crying! Hahahah!"

"Shut up, you jackass! He won't say it, but it's obvious he cares about them", Moira shouted. Though she raised her voice, her abilities were nullified by the cuffs.

"Anyways, before you got to Full Bloom, Cannibal made him a compromise. He really doesn't need you idiots, but he also does think it would be a waste to simply kill you. Ergo, with certain stipulations, he decided he would call off the hunt for you." Everyone in the room seemed to grow wide smiles. Sure, the silencers tried to kill them, but they didn't succeed. Plus they weren't going to bother them anymore. This wasn't the conclusion they had planned, but it was the next best thing! This nightmare would soon be over! "You shouldn't look so happy. There's that stipulation I was talking about."

"What is it? What could he possibly want", Gurin asked.

"The flesh of those who aided them, and thwarted us." He then looked over towards the ex-agents. "He and his crew want to eat your friends over there", he said He had one of the most deranged looks on his face.

"H-he w-wants what", Jabra asked. He thought maybe he misheard something...but It couldn't have been what he thought it was.

"You heard me. In exchange for the lives of the runaway agents, Cannibal wants the flesh and blood of you five", he said as he looked back over to the non-agents."

To be Continued.


	11. Last Call

After the group had fallen into a trap laid by Hatchet, they were surprised to find Rob lucci! For a second, it had seemed that all their troubles were over...until Hatchet broke the news to them all. Cannibal wants to have the friends of the ex-cipher pol for dinner, and not in a good way. This was a compromise that apparently was made after Lucci pleaded with Cannibal.

"You can't be serious! He wants to eat them", Fukurou asked.

"Lucci! Go back and tell him no deal! Those sick bastards aren't getting anything out of us except an ass kicking", Blueno yelled. He tried to break free from his restraints but it was no use.

"This shouldn't be all too surprising for you Jabra. You and Lucci have a history of trying to taste your opponents. Afterall you both have carnivorous Zoan fruits."

"We never tried to EAT people", Jabra shouted.

"Potato potota! Either way, don't be angry at me, he's the one who offered the idea." Hatchet pointed over towards Lucci. I mean I was content with simply killing them.

"It was the only thing I could think of. It was in YOUR best interest since I don't know them", Lucci said.

"As awful as it seems, it makes sense. If he could save them, at the cost of the lives of people he barely even knows then of course he'd take the opportunity", Raymond said.

"It doesn't matter. Lucci, go negotiate with Cannibal and tell him either find another deal, or we'll resume our pursuit", Kalifa said. "They are NOT on the menu."

"No...", he simply said.

"What!? We do not want to hear your NO! We want you to reconsider", kumadori shouted. That ever-so rare anger was starting to show. This time, Lucci didn't say anything. He simply walked off through the door.

"Ouch! He doesn't value those five at all. Oh well! By the way, I'll be here keeping an eye on you, since I know I cant trust you. Talk about boring", Hatchet said as he pulled up a chair to sit on. "Oh, and just as a little assurance...", several lance-like streams of water positioned themselves in front of each captive. Try ANYTHING and I'll end each of you. Cannibal never said I had to bring you to him alive.

Jabra growled and looked over towards Raymond. "Raymond, you got a plan, right?" There was no response. Raymond, you got a plan...right!?" Again, there was no response. "Dammit Raymond, answer me! They're going to kill you!"

"I'm sorry. There's nothing I can do. Besides...I think this is pretty much how I expected I would end up anyways. As long as you can live, then I kept my promise", Raymond replied.

"Ah, crap. I told Heaton I'd come back...but I guess this will be a real letdown for em huh", Borya said. He had a huge frown on his face.

"You two are just giving up!? We travelled all the way here, and you're just giving up!?' Kalifa was actually yelling at them. It would seem that hearing them caused her to become a bit more aggressive.

"This isn't our fight anymore anyways. Its yours. I'm sorry I couldn't save the rest of us", Serenity said.

" Kumadori-San...I made a promise that I'd protect you and that's what I did. I can't say I saw this coming though...".

"No don't talk like that! We're going to get out of this together. You must all survive", Kumadori shouted. He had tears pouring down...and they weren't his usual dramatic ones.

"Well, aren't you guys awfully accepting of your fate. How admirable. Almost unnaturally apathetic", Hatchet said. He almost seemed to be enjoying this.

"Thats part of being an adventurer. Your game could end at any moment. I guess we kind of made peace with it already", Moira said. "Sure, it's scary, but we're not going to cry." Blueno simply looked over at them in horror. "Dont worry...Everything will be fine, as long as you can keep dreaming...As long as you see the stars...just don't worry. As long as I'm your heart...don't worry. As long as I can make you smile...", Moira said all in sing song. It was a lullaby her mother would sing her, whenever she was worried about her dad. Then that's when they heard something unexpected. Hatchet let out a yawn. Funny, he didn't seem tired at first. "Wait...is it possible? But my devil fruit powers should be negated...", she thought to herself. "Maybe he just gets sleep easy? It may be more effective if I had something else to help." She looked over towards Raymond, and motioned towards her eyes.

"What? Eyes...no wait...is she pointed towards her glasses? No! MY glasses. My star pupil...but if he notices me trying to attack, he'll attack! We have to distract him." Raymond then looked over at Gurin, and motioned towards Hatchet.

"Hm...what is he trying to tell me, she thought to herself. She knew it wasn't to attack. She couldn't do much right now as is. The only thing she could do right now would be to create some kind of distraction. Perhaps that's what he wanted her to do. "Moira looked over at Gurin and nodded, before looking back over at Raymond, and holding her cuffs up just enough for Raymond to see. "Oh! I see now. Ok, here goes nothing", she thought. It would seem that her bag had been taken away so she had nothing to use as a distraction...well almost nothing. She managed to pry her left shoe off with her right foot, and move it to the edge of the cage she was in. There was enough room for her to slide the shoe out of the cage. Before doing anything else, she looked over towards Raymond, and Moira to make sure she was following them. Both of them smiled and nodded, giving her the "good to go look". She nodded back, and pushed her shoe out of the cage, causing it to make a slapping sound once it hit the ground.

"Hm? What was that", Hatchet said as he quickly glanced over at the shoe that fell from above the caged captives. As soon as he did, Raymond shot a beam from his glasses, that broke Moira's cuff. The sea stone cuffs weren't lined with Haki like his and the rest of the captives who didn't possess a devil fruit. The cuffs made a loud sound, as they broke, but Moira quickly put her hands down as to hide the evidence. "Hm. What happened? What was that sound!?"

"What sound? What the hell are you going on about", Jabra shouted. Yes! He caught on already, as they had hoped he would.

"Sound? You feeling ok", Serenity asked. Luckily, they all knew each other well enough to play along when they were trying to fool someone.

"Damn...must be more tired than I thought. I've been chasing these goons for a while...", Hatchet thought to himself.

Moira slowly removed the broken handcuffs from her wrists. "Raymond...lets put this guy to bed", she quietly said.

Raymond nodded. "Hey Hatchet...", can you answer me one last thing before we get eaten?"

"And whats that?"

"Come here for a second. I don't want the others to hear."

"Oh, come now Raymond. Last words should be heard by everyone", Jabra called out, still playing along.

"Yeah, I agree, Raymond. Say it out loud for your comrades", Hatchet said as he smirked.

Kalifa nudged Jabra as to tell him to 'dial it back just a bit'. They wanted it to be believable, but they needed to make sure they don't ruin it either.

"Leave him be. If he wants to share a secret in privacy, then what should we care", Blueno said.

Hatchet sighed. "Alright, fine! Only because it's the last thing I say to you before you five get hauled away." Hatchet made his way over to the cage that Raymond, Moira, Gurin, Borya and Serenity dangled in. He manipulated the water to form a current to lift him up to the cage. "What is it? And no funny stuff. Remember, I'll kill you if you even THINK of trying anything.

"Right, right. I just have one question for you", Raymond said as he scooted up to the bars of the cage.

Hatchet too came up close enough to speak directly to Raymond. "Yeah, what?"

"Your getting sleepy aren't you", Raymond asked.

"No, im not. Why do you ask."

"Yes...you are getting sleepy. Your wanting to go into a deep sleep, aren't you?"

At that moment, Moira began singing her lullaby again. "Dont worry...Everything will be fine, as long as you can keep dreaming...As long as you see the stars...just don't worry. As long as I'm your heart...don't worry. As long as I can make you smile...Dont worry."

"Shut up Moira", Hatchet said as he seemed to get a bit grouchy.

"She's not bothering anyone... you'll let her sing, won't you", Raymond said.

"Yes...I guess I'll let her sing", Hatchet replied. It almost seemed to sound like he was in a trance but he kept fighting it. Moira continued singing.

"Your very tired, aren't you? You could fall into a deep sleep right now", Raymond asked.

"Yes...I could. I'm so tired", Hatchet replied. This time he closed his eyes and seemed to sway.

"You're an idiot for forgetting to take away my glasses. Aren't you", Raymond asked as he smiled. "I made them with the ability to hypnotize."

"Yes...I should have broken them...", Hatchet said before he fell over. The combination of suggestion, and Moira's devil fruit-based lullaby song put him into a deep slumber. Each of the water lances that hovered in front of everyone fell to the floor with a splash.

"Wow... I cant believe that worked", Borya said. "Even I was starting to get sleepy."

"Thats the power of teamwork. Now hold still so I can get those cuffs off of you." Raymond, used his start pupil attack to shoot the cuffs off of each of his captive friends. Though the cuffs that bound, him Fukurou and Kumadori would take much more effort to get off. "Well...as long as some of us are free."

"Exactly! Blueno broke the bars off of the cage that held the former agents, and Borya did the same. Each of them landed on the floor with ease. Hatchet didn't seem to stir. "If it weren't for our friends, we would be killing you right now. Blueno said towards Hatchet.

"We shouldn't waste time anyways; he won't be a threat to us anymore as long as we don't drop our guards again", Kalifa said.

"She's right. We have to catch that leopard man before he gets away. He couldn't have gone far", Gurin said. I'm not a hundred on this, but I think I saw him make a left after he walked out the door.

"Please go on after him. I shall get rid of these cuffs on Raymond, Fukurou and myself", Kumadori said. The rest of the group nodded and proceeded down the hallway.

"Kumadori how do you plan on getting these cuffs off? We can't break them", Raymond asked.

"Fear not! For I shall use my locks to pick the locks." Both Fukurou and Raymond looked over at each other, seemingly very confused. "Observe! His hair sharpened, and entered the keyhole on his cuffs. "I must maintain utter silence...for the insides must be done perfectly...as to open the hatch and...'Click'!" The Cuffs on his hands fell to the floor.

Raymonds jumped up in excitement. "Woot! Go Kumadori! Hey wait a second...why didn't you do that before? You could have easily done that without Hatchet knowing."

"Well...hm? I dare say. Why DIDN'T I do that earlier", he asked as he rubbed his head.

"Oh, just get our cuffs off already", Fukurou shouted.

"What do you think is at the end of this hallway? If we let him get away, we'll have no way of finding him again", Borya said.

Jabra shook his head and growled. "Don't worry! We'll catch up to him and punch holes in his head. What the hell was he thinking offering you all as sacrifices. Wait. Stop", he yelled. "I hear talking." One of the voices was definitely Lucci's...but the other one also sounded familiar.

"It's been taken care of. Now all we have to do is leave them be. As long as they stop trying to look for us, they'll stay alive at least", Lucci said.

"I see...that's good at least", the voice replied. It didn't exactly sound happy.

"What's the issue? I told you, those five mean nothing to us."

"Yeah, but I mean they did help them. Don't you feel at least somewhat bad about it?"

"I already told you. It wasn't my decision. It was the only compromise that Cannibal would accept."

"You didn't answer my question. Don't you feel some shred of guilt about it?"

"I know that voice! That...", Jabra began to say before he jumped out into the open. "Kaku!" There he was. Not only was Lucci here, but so was Kaku. "Should have known you wouldn't be too far away!"

"Well...it's nice to see you all conscious. I didn't think you'd escape though", Kaku said.

Just then, Raymond, Kumadori and Fukurou caught up with the rest of the group. "We're here! Did you find...", Raymond began to say.

Kumadori nearly fell over. "Kaku! You were also here the whole time?"

"Of course! This IS where our mission was moved to Afterall. How did you all escape anyways?" There was no reply...more or less a look of malice from everyone at the group. "Um...why are you all looking at us like that", Kaku asked.

"Get them", Jabra shouted! An explosion of rage filled the group, as they all pounced on Lucci and Kaku at once!

When Lucci and Kaku came to, they both realized they were handcuffed by the Haki lined cuffs. Hatchet also had a pair on as well, but he was already asleep. "What is the meaning of this", Lucci shouted.

Jabra quickly grabbed him by the collar. "Shut up! We should kill you for this...but that would make this whole journey pointless. Not only that, but I guess I'm happy to see you two. No explain yourselves! Did you have anything to do with sending these silencers after us?"

"Tch. Don't be stupid. If I wanted you dead, I would have done it myself." That was a huge relief. At least they were now assured that this silencer ordeal was not because of them. But that was just one question answered on a list of many more. "As for the deal, as I stated it was all I could manage.

"We get that! And it was a stupid deal. We told you to come up with another one and you ignored us. No matter what you were trying to accomplish, we wouldn't sacrifice anyone just to live."

"I see. Its because of them, that you have gone so soft, isn't it?" He directed the comment at the friends of the ex-agents. "This is what happens when you associate with normal people."

"They nearly DIED trying to help us! And they could have died trying to help us locate you and that's all you have to say", Blueno asked. While its true we didn't ask them to do it for us, they did. We used to be exactly like you of course but..."

"We don't owe him an explanation. Just like he said to us", Kalifa said. She was sure to put some venom into that as well. We came all the way here for their sake...and... Well, I guess I cant be too upset. Its not like he didn't care enough to try to save us. BUT as we said before, offering up our friends to the person we've been hunting is NOT going to happen.

"You can either willingly come back to the ship with us, or we can drag you both back. You may be strong, but we got stronger too", Fukurou said.

"Good luck with that. Your ship is miles and miles away from Last Call. Between this and there there's nothing but sea. And its too risky to steal a ship to get back", Kaku replied.

"A risk we're willing to take", Gurin replied. "Shall we formulate a plan? We'll need a good one to get out of this situation.

"I have a few idea. We'll spitball and see what sticks", Raymond replied.

"What!? Just like that? Did you already forget how we were going to let you die", Lucci asked.

"No, we didn't forget. But a friend of our friend is a friend to us. Afterall, you were only looking out for them. Truth be told we kind of understood your methods. Of course, we weren't happy with that either, but you get my point", Moira said.

Raymond agreed with a nod. "Yeah we kind of knew your choices were limited, which is why we've come to take care of the source of everyone's problems, and that's Cannibal."

Lucci was honestly surprised. They all were pretty much risking their lives to save him and Kaku. They were doing all this for each other. "And you realize that Cannibal is..."

"Yes, we know. Really strong. A lot of people we've fought were really strong, but we still fought them. Consider this the final hurdle. At least for now", Gurin replied.

"Then count me in. Working for the government is about as boring as I remember it being", Kaku said. "Going after a bigshot sounds a lot more exciting."

"Like we said, we were going to drag you both along anyways. Only difference is going with ot without a fight", Jabra said with a smirk.

"Oh bother. I guess I truly don't have a choice. Very well then. I'll aid you...but not because you asked me to. I only want to see how this end. It was faint, but he gave a small smirk.

"That reminds me! The other reason we came all the way here", Kumadori shouted. Everyone turned towards the loud Kabuki man. "Wheeeeeeere is Spandam?"


	12. Last Call End

"Spandam! That's right! The guy you guys were looking for? The guy you all swore revenge against, right", Gurin asked.

"Yes! Where is that little weasel anyways", Jabra asked.

"Spandam...works under us now. When we rejoined, they gave him a lower position", Kaku said.

"It makes no difference! He is the one who blamed us and caused us to be run anyways", Kumadori shouted. "Now where is he?"

"Don't bother. Killing him won't solve anything...if you want to beat him up later don't worry, I'll at least allow that", Lucci said.

"He's going to get whatever they want to give him. It doesn't matter what you 'allow'", Borya replied. He clearly wasn't intimidated by Lucci. "But I do think he has a point. Spandam can wait until we've taken care of the bigger threat. Cannibal is going to realize we're not on his dinner plate and come after us again. The silencers shouldn't be a problem anymore I think, but now we're definitely in dangerous territory."

"Thats not the worst part. We're probably islands away from the SkyDancer AND all our supplies that are on it. Is Cannibal even here", Raymond asked.

"No. This is only the base of operations. They were planning to haul you back to his ship. The ship itself is nearly the size of an island", Kaku replied. "Strangely enough, trying to board it isn't the problem. FINDING it is."

Jabra shook his head. "If its so big, then how is finding it the problem? It would stick out like a sore thumb, wouldn't it."

"Be quiet and listen", Lucci snapped back. Its hidden in the Witch's Square."

"Square? Square...", Fukurou asked as he looked at Kaku. He was instantly greeted by a 'dont even say it' look.

"It may not come as a surprise, but I've heard of that place", Serenity said. It's one of those more frightening places in the new world, but not so much because of other people. More so because of the strange occurrences that plague the place. Strange things happen in the Witch's square. Ship's mysteriously vanish without a trace, log poses don't work in the area, and some say that with the exception of Cannibal and his crew, noone who enters the Witch's square has ever left. Even wildlife disappears once they enter. The place is so strange that whenever Cannibal himself has business meetings, he has to leave it and go face to face with whoever he needs to converse with. If we went there, we would have a 99 percent chance...of never being heard from again", Serenity said.

"Y-yikes! That's some high odds", Raymond replied.

"Yeah. But that means we have a 1 percent chance of triumphing", Gurin replied. "That doesn't sound as assuring as I thought it would. If we don't do it, Cannibal will come after us, right? That would save us the trouble of going to such a place, right", she then asked.

"I doubt it. The only thing he's going to keep doing is sending people after us until someone manages to do us in. Just like how Hatchet nearly had us ready to be hauled off to the Witch's Square. While we're a lot stronger together, they'll eventually send someone who can counter our abilities like they did with the silencers. As dangerous as it is, our best option would probably be to confront our problem head on", Serenity said.

Kalifa nodded and began to look around. "Are we all in agreement then? Our next, and hopefully last mission shall be to hunt down Cannibal and his colleagues." Everyone nodded! Noone had any intention of staying behind. "Then lets confiscate one of these ships and go find our SkyDancer."

"We'll have to do it carefully. If they find out we've switched sides, they'll inform Cannibal and ruin our element of surprise. There are plenty ships here, but none many of them are durable for travel. Ergo, if we get attacked, we just might sink before we make it to wherever your ship is", Kaku said. "I suggest we plan for every possible outcome, considering anything could go wrong."

Borya nodded. "As grim as it sounds, he speaks the truth. Now where can we find the most durable ship here?"

"The dock is a bit further down. Its where we were headed. Now, are we ready to get on with this mission or what", Lucci asked. He got up and held his cuffed hands out expectantly. The group all agreed to release them both. They knew they could all travel in a group now.

Right then and there, another familiar face appeared coming from around the corner. Are you two almost ready, we're falling be...", the voice said as the man who bore it stopped in his tracks. His face flushed the second he saw half of the people in the group. "Oh no", he thought to himself. He was instantly greeted by what seemed to be confused faces. But within seconds, most of them turned into murderous scowls. His first instinct was to hightail it to the nearest door but he knew them well enough to know it wouldn't do him any good. The strange thing is, he knew they would eventually find him...but he didn't realize it would be so soon. As scared as he was, he didn't feel to surprise.

"Spandam...", Kalifa simply said. She adjusted her glasses. She felt a sense of calm. Its almost as if she didn't actually want to kill him. Likewise, many of the others didn't have a sense of urgency for some reason. All the talk of finding him and beating him to a bloody pulp before...what was this all about.

Borya eyed each of the x-agents. "Spandam, right? The man you guys were hunting for. This is him?" He was asking as if he were waiting for them to do something.

"I think I get it... You've kind of been pushed to the bottom of the list. We have a higher priority right now", Raymond said.

"Yeah! Its your lucky day chie... er ...Spandam." Jabra almost called him chief again by accident.

"Wait...so your not going to kill me? I thought you were hunting me down. I overheard everything from the silencers."

"I can't say we wont kill you. It's just right now, we don't even care enough to kill you. YET! Now as for that ship", Blueno said as he eyed down the dock. There was only one ship left. It looked pretty dingy. Compared to the Skydancer, it looked like a piece of crap...but until they could reunite with the Skydancer, it was going to have to be THIER piece of crap. "Look at this thing. We'll be lucky if we don't sink to the bottom of the ocean the moment we take off."

"Let's not jinx it", Gurin replied. "We've made it all the way here; we can make it to the island. We'd better recover what they took from us and set sail.

Though rickety it was, they would have to take care of it for the next few days if they wanted it to. For the purpose of honoring any vessel they would ride, they decided to name the ship "Last Hurrah!"

"Ok, this isn't so bad. A bit creaky, and just being on it makes me feel uneasy, but it's acceptable", Moira said. She held onto the wheel and steered them towards the directions Lucci and Kaku gave her.

"Face it Moira, the SkyDancer has spoiled you. Its spoiled all of us. but I guess that's natural. It's our 'first ship' so we've grown attached to it", Serenity replied. "I have good news and bad news. Staring with the bad news...our beloved SkyDancer is at least probably three days away from here. The good news however, is Full Bloom island isn't that far from where the Witch's Square is supposed to be. This means that after we find our ship, we can head straigjt there."

"The water is mysteriously calm today. There shouldn't be any sea kings around, but still it's quite ominous", Kumadori added. "Should we be concerned?"

"We're already in one of the strangest areas of the new world. Everything at this point would be cause for concern... but in response to your sea king comment... there are actually numerous sea kings in this part of the sea. Plus, they are a lot more aggressive in this area. Not to mention stronger", Lucci said.

"You're just telling us this now!? We should have been told about this earlier", Moira said.

"Whats the problem, we're strong enough to take them", Kauku replied.

"Yeah, but the ship isn't! Old rickety here won't survive if a sea king rams into it!"

"I thought we decided to name it Last Hurrah", Kaku said nonchalantly. Moira simply glared at him due to not being able to get her point across.

"We'll just have to be careful of our surroundings. The fog is depressing as it is...", Blueno said.

"Since we have time, why don't you explain to me how this came to be", Lucci said as he pointed towards the wayward group of non ex agents.

"Its a very long story, so I'll give you the abridged version. After you and Kaku sailed off into who knows where, we were pretty much stranded on the island. Our mission was to start new lives and try to leave the government behind...for the time being. Of course, getting revenge on that weasel was still part of the plan", Jabra said as he motioned dover towards Spandam. This made Spandam flinch in fear. "Anyway, the plan was to lay low until the heat was off and we built up funds for our travel...and we ended up meeting our friends. As fate would have it, they were also the ones who saved us from those silencers."

"You mean to tell me this ragtag group of civilians was strong enough to combat people that were even higher up on the pole than we were? Especially these two", Lucci said as he pointed to Raymond and Gurin. He doesn't have a devil fruit, or even the slightest killing instinct. And she looks like she's too docile to combat even a fly."

"Tough talk coming from someone who lost to a random group of pirates. Not to mention one made of rubber", Raymond replied. He seemed to be tinkering with something, but he kept a close eye on Lucci.

"Tell, me, do you fear easily like their sniper did", Lucci said as he took his leopard man form. Raymond wrapped his hand around the roman candle on his belt.

"Please, no fighting! We must move as a team or we'll be destroyed before we reach our true goal", Kumadori said. Raymon returned back to tinkering with something, while Lucci returned to his normal form.

"Dont feel bad, he doesn't have a very high opinion on most people", Blueno said over to the group.

Borya shook his head. "Anyways, they honestly did put up quite a fight. They almost did us in too, so it's not like it was a flawless victory."

"You don't have to explain anything Borya, we're all grateful."

"It might not seem like it, but he is as well", Kaku said as he pointed towards Lucci. Lucci looked back over and scowled at him. Suddenly, that's when the boat rocked hard, as if something crashed into it. "Thats...not good. Its either the world government attacking us again, or some sea kings who think the ship is lunch." They all ran outside to the deck to see what could have possibly been the problem...but after careful observation, there seemed to be no threat. "Rough waves maybe?"

"No... look closer", Raymond said. He was focusing on the sea in front of him. He must have been using his Haki to sense something. Everyone else focused onto the water as well. They could all sense something big moving under them. It was definitely a sea king, but there was something off about it. It gave a very unsettling aura. Almost as if it had some kind of vindictive intent. Do you all see that?"

"Yeah...wait, I think it's coming up! Everyone get ready!" Everyone hopped backwards, as a pillar of water erupted right alongside their ship. "Ugh! It's definitely strong", Gurin yelled. The sea king almost looked like some kind of shark...but it had wings! It was red with razor sharp teeth. It was definitely bigger than the ship they were on. One might say it was bigger than The Last Hurrah, and Skydancer out together! There was water leaking out of its maw and it was hardly distinguishable from what may have been saliva. It looked at everyone on the vessel, almost like it was glaring at each and every one of them.

"It's one of those stronger sea kings! Everyone, get ready", Kaku said.

"Keep it away from the ship! We can't afford to sink all the way out here", Fukurou yelled. The creature dove for the inhabitants of the ship, but was forced back by multiple simultaneous punches. Take THAT you overgrown fish!"

The best was not please. This time it swam backwards to get away from the ship. "Retreating already? Well that wasn't so bad", Serenity said. The creature was not retreating however. It opened its maw, and gave off an unsettling blue light. "Thats...not good."

"Gurin, lets cancel it out", Raymond shouted as he inserted a red cap into his weapon. This time it glowed a darker red than last time he used it.

"Right! Let's try THAT attack", she said as she transformed.

"THAT attack", Kaku asked, sounding confused.

Just then a powerful force of water shot from the sea King's mouth! It looked like it would be enough pressure to leave a hole in even the strongest fort! "Venus shot!" A red ball of fire shot out of the candle!

"Sun Vortex!" A flame erupted from Gurin's mouth, and trailed right behind the ball of fire. Like a knife going through butter, the fire managed to fizzle away at the water...but it didn't stop there. The fire combo kept going until it disintegrated the fish itself! "Woot! We got em!"

"Hey...not bad. What do you two call that", Kaku asked.

"Venus, Vortex of course", Rayond replied...but his sudden smile turned into a frown. I think that battle caused a bit more of a stir than we thought it would. They have us surrounded now!"

"They!? Pirates? Marines? Where are they", Jabra asked as he frantically looked around.

"Neither. There wasn't just ONE sea king. It was an entire school of them", Moira said. Giant waves began rocking the ship to and fro! It was almost like someone was pushing the ship repeatedly. "This isn't good. This is not good in the slightest!"

"What are they doing? They are not surfacing. Could they be stalling for an attack", Kumadori asked. As if to answer the questions, the ship itself slowly began to move...but it was not moving forward or backwards. It was slowly moving in a circle. At first it started out pretty gentle...but then it began to spin faster and faster.

"Um...why are we spinning? We shouldn't be spinning, right", Borya asked. They ship's rotating speed increased yet again. "Wait...would there be any natural occurrences that would cause this",

"Perhaps a whirlpool, but...they aren't as common as...", Blueno said as he tried to keep his balance. "Wait. The Sea Kings are doing this! They're causing a whirlpool. They'll sink us!"

"A whirlpool!? Quick! Everyone grab hold", Gurin shouted. She was going to fly everyone off of the ship...but before everyone was able to grab onto her...the sudden rush of water washed over the entire crew. The Sea kings managed to pull the boat down into the sea! The ship continued to spin, as it was pulled deeper into the water...

To be Continued...


End file.
